The conflict in West Asia has begun to affect sport, with two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu among thousands of Indians left stranded earlier this week after hostilities escalated following attacks by the United States and Israel on Iran. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei was reportedly killed in the strikes.
With West Asia being a major transit route for Indian international travel, several flights were disrupted.
Sindhu, who returned to Bengaluru on Tuesday after being stuck in Dubai for three days, confirmed that the fine for missing the All England Championships would be waived while speaking at a virtual press conference. She said the Badminton World Federation will respond in the next couple of days regarding ranking points.
In the BWF World Tour, top-ranked players are required to play all Super 1000 tournaments, and missing one without a valid reason can lead to a zero-point penalty (player receives zero points for that tournament, and it cannot be replaced by a better result in their 10 best tournament ranking calculation) in rankings, along with a USD 5,000 fine.
“I’ve actually emailed the BWF and explained my situation. I’ve constantly been updating them and exploring different ways to reach the tournament venue,” she said.
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“Initially they wanted to gather as much information as possible because some Japanese players were also stuck, but they somehow found another way and reached Birmingham. I was the only one from Dubai transit who couldn’t reach the venue or return for a while.”
The build-up to the Super 1000 event had already taken a backseat after Sindhu was left stranded in Dubai. Among other athletes affected was former world No. 1 Daniil Medvedev, who was also reported to be stuck in the city.
With missiles reportedly seen across the skyline, Sindhu revealed on X that her Indonesian coach, Irwansyah Adi Pratama, had a narrow escape following an explosion near the airport where they were stationed.
Sindhu said her training routine would continue as usual and that she was looking forward to the Swiss Open, scheduled from March 10. However, she added that travel remains uncertain given the situation.
“I’m exploring different ways to reach Switzerland, but all the flights are full right now. Let’s see what happens. The war is still going on, and it is quite sensitive. I can’t tell you anything now because it is not in my hands,” she said.
“He (Irwansyah) is obviously terrified. He heard the explosion, and they ran out. My coach and the team were then moved to a different hotel, and even there they could hear several explosions. We were also receiving alerts on our phones from authorities about what to do and what not to do,” she added.
Published on Mar 03, 2026
