India Open to move to Guwahati in 2028, Delhi to host 2027 and 2029
Sanjay Mishra, secretary general of the Badminton Association of India, said on the finals day of the BWF World Championships in Delhi that the India Open will be staged in Guwahati for the 2028 edition, while Delhi will host the tournament in 2027 and 2029.
The announcement follows the BWF's release of a new World Tour calendar that retains the India Open as a Super 750 event. The 2027 India Open has been rescheduled from its traditional January slot to February 2-7, whereas the 2028 tournament is listed for January 25-30, a window that includes India’s Republic Day period; the 2026 edition took place from January 13 to 18 at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium.
Mishra said the proposed 2028 relocation to Guwahati is driven principally by logistics around the Republic Day period. "The 2027 India Open will happen here. But for 2028, we might shift it to Guwahati because around 25th January to 29th or 30th January, that period — the 26th January period — in this area, it becomes very difficult for players' movement, for practice, and for the tournament as well. So we might shift it to Guwahati," he told the media.
He described the Guwahati option as temporary and confirmed the event would return to the capital after 2028. "After that, we will do it here only," Mishra said.
Mishra also explained why the immediate change for 2027 was a date shift rather than a venue change, pointing to limitations in the BWF schedule. "That is not possible. Actually, this is a calendar that BWF decides. Changing the date of one tournament would require changing the whole calendar, so that is not possible," he said. He added: "What used to be in January, we have shifted to February — now it is next from 2nd to 7th February. By that time, the cold reduces a bit and the pollution also decreases a bit."
The 2026 India Open drew criticism from several international players over Delhi’s winter conditions: Singapore’s Loh Kean Yew said he felt he was breathing less in Delhi and that the air quality affected players' energy levels, Danish player Mia Blichfeldt raised concerns about conditions around the training facilities, and World No. 4 Anders Antonsen skipped the 2026 India Open and was fined US$5,000 after his withdrawal was not accepted by the BWF; he had said at the time that he did not believe Delhi was a suitable place to host a badminton tournament amid the extreme pollution.
After returning to Delhi for the World Championships, Antonsen said he was unhappy to see the tournament scheduled in Delhi again in February 2027 and argued that pollution in January and February could still be severe, adding he would rather pay the withdrawal penalty than play the tournament under such conditions again. BWF Secretary General Thomas Lund acknowledged the air-quality concern while saying the 2027 India Open would go ahead in Delhi in February and expressing hope for players' support. Lund also said he was "super impressed" by the work carried out at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium following earlier criticism over hygiene, playing and practice conditions, bird droppings and a monkey intrusion, and that the federation had received overwhelmingly positive feedback from players and other stakeholders who experienced the venue during the India Open and returned for the World Championships.
The confirmed next step is the 2027 India Open in Delhi from February 2-7, while the 2028 slot of January 25-30 — overlapping the Republic Day period — is the rationale for considering Guwahati as the host for that year, with the event expected to return to Delhi thereafter.