New Delhi, Jun 30 (PTI) India Open Super 750 will be held in the relatively warmer month of February next year after international players criticised the poor air quality and freezing court conditions during this year’s tournament.
The 2026 edition of the country’s flagship event was held from January 13-18 at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium.
It will now be staged from February 2-7 in 2027, and from January 25-30 in 2028 in the national capital, according to the 2027 and 2028 World Tour calendar released by the Badminton World Federation on Tuesday.
The 2026 edition had attracted widespread criticism from elite international players over hazardous air quality, freezing indoor court temperatures and concerns related to venue hygiene.
Denmark’s Anders Antonsen withdrew from the tournament, citing the “extreme” and hazardous air pollution levels, while compatriot Mia Blichfeldt publicly criticised the unhygienic conditions at the training venue, citing bird droppings and dust on the warm-up courts.
The Syed Modi India International, which has been downgraded to a Super 100 event, will be held in Lucknow from July 27 to August 1 in 2027 and from July 25 to 30 in 2028.
The BWF confirmed a 35-tournament global circuit for 2027 and 2028, ranging from Super 1000 to Super 100 levels, along with the season-ending World Tour Finals.
The calendar will run year-round from January to December. At the top tier, the circuit will feature five Super 1000 tournaments across Asia and Europe, each staged over 11 days across two weekends.
The format will include a 48-player singles draw featuring a group stage followed by knockout rounds, along with a 32-pair doubles knockout draw.
All 1,095 matches from the Super 1000 tournaments will be broadcast globally.
“Our players are at the heart of everything we do. As global ambassadors and icons of our sport, they deserve an environment that allows them to perform at their best, recover properly, and connect meaningfully with fans around the world,” BWF President Khunying Patama Leeswadtrakul said in a release.
“The enhancements introduced in this calendar, including extended competition windows, are a deliberate step to improve playing conditions for our top athletes. They enable more balanced scheduling and greater recovery time between matches, supporting players in their pursuit of excellence and helping them sustain longer, more successful careers.
“At the same time, we now have a high-quality, globally balanced circuit of unprecedented scale — more televised matches into more markets — creating greater opportunities for players and accelerating badminton’s global reach and impact.” All tournaments in the 2027–2028 calendar will be played under the new 3×15 scoring system, effective from January 4, 2027 as part of BWF’s long-term strategy to modernise competition formats and enhance the presentation of the sport worldwide.
The LA28 Olympic Games qualifying window runs from May 3, 2027 to April 30, 2028.
The dates and host cities for the BWF Sudirman Cup Finals 2027, BWF World Championships 2027, and BWF Thomas & Uber Cup Finals 2028 will be confirmed separately. PTI ATK TAP
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