No air-conditioners during World Championships: Verma

NEW DELHI: The air-conditioners, which had been a cause of concern for shuttlers at the Indian Open, would be shut down during the World Badminton Ch
ampionships so that the drift does not affect players, assured BAI chief VK Verma.

The drift from the ACs at the Gachibowli stadium in Hyderabad had made life hard for shuttlers during the Indian Open, many of whom complained they were finding it difficult to control the shuttle.

The BAI thus decided to keep them shut during the World Championships in August and to negate the heat factor, the Gachibowli stadium would be pre-cooled before matches.

"We intend to pre-cool the stadium and have matches for 2-3 hours without the air-conditioners following which there will be another break during which the venue will be once again pre-cooled. There won't be an AC during the matches," Verma said.

The decision evoked mixed reactions from the shuttlers, with Indian world number seven Saina Nehwal saying it was a good idea.

"The shuttles were very fast in the Indian Open. Nowadays the courts are becoming slower but in Hyderabad it was very fast and it was difficult to control the shuttle," Saina said.

"But I think it is a good idea to pre-cool the stadium, it will help the shuttlers," she added.

Aravind Bhat, who will also represent India in the World Championships, sounded apprehensive.

"It would be difficult to do that considering matches would be going in five courts and after every 2-3 hours they can't ask players to stop playing and it might very well affect their game. But if they can manage to do that it would solve the problem," said Bhat.

Many players, including Chetan Anand had a torrid time during the Indian Open in March this year, when they failed to control the shuttle which moved abruptly because of the drift from two air-conditioners which were used during the matches.

Chetan, though, felt if Indian shuttlers could get a week's training with the ACs in full blast, it would help them acclimatise with the drift prior to the big event.

"In all events there are air-conditioners but then it is a one-way drift, during Indian Open there was a two-way drift and it became difficult to control the shuttle. This time during the World Championship if there can be a one-week training prior to the tournament, it will help shuttlers to acclimatise better," Chetan said.

When asked about BAI's plan to shut the ACs during matches, Chetan said, "It is a good idea as long as the heat doesn't affect the foreign players because switching off the ACs during matches will generate a lot of heat in the stadium.

"But I feel there's nothing wrong in experimenting as long as the stadium is cool and comfortable."