Bird droppings halt Kean Yew-Prannoy match twice at India Open [WATCH]

KUALA LUMPUR: A second-round match at the India Open featuring former world champion Loh Kean Yew was halted twice after bird droppings fell onto the court at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium.

The Singaporean was facing India's HS Prannoy when play was first stopped with the home favourite leading 16-14 in the opening game.

The same bizarre incident occurred again in the deciding third game, forcing officials to suspend the match while the court was cleaned.

India Open badminton match between Loh Kean Yew and HS Prannoy halted at 16-14 in the first game after bird poop lands on court at Indira Gandhi stadium. Match was halted for the same reason in game 3. 2 days ago BAI had stated that pigeons were only there in practise court. pic.twitter.com/SFlqsEHiRG

— jonathan selvaraj (@jon_selvaraj) January 15, 2026

Local reports described the episode as extremely rare and possibly unprecedented in badminton history, especially in a Super 750 tournament.

"I think it was bird droppings that caused the stoppage," Prannoy said after the match.

Despite the interruptions, Kean Yew held his nerve in a high-intensity contest, rallying to win 18-21, 21-19, 21-14 and book his place in the quarter-finals.

Concerns over conditions at the India Open have continued to mount, with Denmark's world No. 3 Anders Antonsen revealing on Wednesday that severe air pollution in New Delhi prompted him to withdraw from the tournament for the third straight year.

Antonsensaid he was fined US$5,000 (RM20,237) by the Badminton World Federation (BWF) despite pulling out on health grounds.

Earlier, Danish women's singles player Mia Blichfeldt raised alarm over what she described as unhygienic training facilities, claiming dust and bird droppings were present in the warm-up area at the KD Jadhav Indoor Hall.