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Fresh off title-winning runs by PV Sindhu and Lakshya Sen, a report revealed Indian shuttlers had to fund their own European tour after SAI declined support for four tournaments.
PV Sindhu completed the European swing with her own funding (Picture credit: BWF)
The Sports Authority of India declined to fund the Indian badminton team’s tour of Europe, comprising four competitions, with the shuttlers left to fund their trips for themselves, with the Badminton Association of India finding itself in a bizarre situation, according to a report in The Indian Express.
Double Olympic medallist PV Sindhu and Lakshya Sen gave Indian badminton plenty to cheer about on Sunday, November 1, clinching the singles titles at the Hylo Open in Saarbrücken, Germany.
But just weeks earlier, the nation’s shuttlers had been forced to fund their own European campaign after financial support was withdrawn at the eleventh hour amidst an administrative issue.
As per the report, the shuttlers were notified of the decision just days before the Arctic Open got underway in Vantaa, Finland, on October 6.
“When I got to know, I was a bit shocked and wondered how the funding had not gone through. I had not faced something like that before. But at that point, I could not really decide that if there was no funding, I would not play,” Sindhu said while speaking to The Indian Express.
“For me, the priority was to participate and focus on what I needed to do, how I needed to play my matches and keep on improving. Obviously, it was surprising that we could not get the funding, whatever the reason may have been,” Sindhu added.
As per the report, three officials involved in badminton administration believe the funding withdrawal was linked to India’s performance at the Asian Games.
The Indian shuttlers endured a disappointing campaign in Aichi-Nagoya, failing to win an individual medal for the first time since 2014.
“This is the first time such a thing has happened. There was no official communication explaining why this step was taken. It’s suspected that the decision is linked to performance because, in terms of budget, it’s not the case that the badminton federation has exceeded the limit,” sources said while speaking to The Indian Express.
As per the report, BAI communicated the funding withdrawal to the shuttlers via WhatsApp. The federation offered to cover their accommodation for the opening tournament in Finland but said that they would have to bear the costs of travel, food, lodging and other expenses for the remainder of the European campaign.
“The situation arose because of the funding cut. Who would bear the coach’s costs? The players could not afford to pay for their coaches when they had to take care of their own expenses,” the sources said.
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Ask News18Three administrators suspect the Sports Authority of India withdrew its financial support due to India’s disappointing performance at the Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, where the shuttlers failed to win an individual medal for the first time since 2014.
Ask News18November 03, 2026, 12:36 IST
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