CHENNAI: In what could prove to be a telling blow for the likes of Kidambi Srikanth and Saina Nehwal, the World Badminton Federation (BWF) on Friday announced that the Malaysia Open, which was slated for May 25-30, has been postponed.
The World Tour 750 meet was one of the last events that had crucial Olympic qualification points on offer. Unless BWF comes up with alternate arrangements for qualification, this could probably mean an impossible chase for the duo who are well below the automatic Olympic cut-off mark.
The development has left the Badminton Association of India (BAI) in the dark and the national badminton body said that they have written to the BWF to get clarity on Olympic qualification.
There were already concerns regarding the Indian shuttlers' participation because of travel restrictions due to the ongoing pandemic. The latest development puts the matter to rest, raising other important questions.
"Tournament organisers Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) and Badminton World Federation have jointly agreed to postpone the Malaysia Open 2021, scheduled for 25-30 May 2021," the BWF said on its official website.
"All attempts were made by the organisers and BWF to provide a safe tournament environment for all participants, but the recent surge in cases left us with no choice but to postpone the tournament," the BWF added.
As things stand, PV Sindhu, B Sai Praneeth, and doubles duo of Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy have made the Olympics cut. BAI has been hopeful that more shuttlers, including Saina and Srikanth, can make the cut.
"It's really unfortunate that the crucial qualifier had to be postponed in this way but that is the time we live in now. Though four of our players have already qualified, there are a few more including Saina and Srikanth who can still make it. I have reached out to BWF secretary Thomas Lund asking for clarity on the future course of action," Ajay Singhania, BAI general secretary, said.
The BWF confirmed that they won't be able to organise the event within the Olympic qualifying period, meaning the postponed event will no longer hold Olympic qualifying status.
"The Malaysia Open 2021 is a Super 750 event on the BWF World Tour and was originally scheduled as an Olympic qualifying tournament. BWF can confirm the rescheduled tournament will no longer take place in the Olympic qualifying window. New tournament dates will be confirmed at a later date," Singhania said.
With Malaysia out of the equation, Indian shuttlers and BAI will now look to shift focus to the Singapore Open, a World Tour Super 500 event. But with travel restrictions imposed on Indians by the Singapore government due to the rise in Covid cases, it remains to be seen if the likes of Srikanth and Saina will be able to take part.
BAI said that they are in touch with the Singapore Badminton Association. "We will do whatever best possible can be done to find a better way out so that the shuttlers get the chance to secure the Olympic berths if there's scope and opportunity," Singhania added.