Our Top Badminton Players Are Facing Shortage Of Funds For International Trips And That Is Simply Unacceptable

Some of India's leading badminton players, including current national champion Sourabh Verma and 2014 CWG gold medallist Parupalli Kashyap, have been forced to arrange for their own funding to compete in international tournaments like the Super Series and Grand Prix.

This has happened due to Badminton Association of India's (BAI) 'informal rule' which allows only players in the top-25 of BWF world rankings to be eligible for financial assistance from the federation and the Sports Authority of India (SAI).

The lack of monetary support has prompted players - who are part of Indian badminton's 'national core group' - to knock on the doors of BAI president, Himanta Biswa Sarma. They have requested him to fund them for international tournaments.

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TOI is in possession of a letter written by the affected group of senior players, which includes national champions across singles, doubles and mixed doubles categories.

In the letter, the players - most of whom train at the Pullela Gopichand academy in Hyderabad - have stated: "Ever since the rule which only enables players in top-25 of the world to get funding from the BAI/sports ministry, we are spending money from our own pockets.

Most of us do not have any private sponsors nor a permanent job and only few of us are spending from the money we get from our respective equipment sponsors while many of the players have lost their monetary contracts from their equipment sponsors and are using their family's money."

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The letter further says: "Being in the core group, all we are getting right now is training at the national centre which is extremely good but we also feel that we need more backing in terms of players being sent for international tournaments.

We also feel neglected from the association as all the money is diverted towards the established players (who are part of top-25 in world rankings) who have multiple sponsors. We would be grateful if players from the core group could, at least, get 10-12 tournaments per year funded by the BAI/ministry."

According to the players, this top-25 rule has only been communicated to them verbally by BAI and there's nothing in writing.

According to the system, the federation would organise six national ranking tournaments every year, apart from the senior nationals. Out of them, two tournaments would be earmarked as selection tournaments.

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The selected players would then be offered to make a choice of two international tournaments and the trip will be funded by BAI. However, in a year, there are 15-16 Super Series and Grand Prix events and the players have been forced to spend from their own pockets to compete in remaining tournaments.

Since December 2018, after the conduct of ranking tournaments in Kurnool and Bengaluru, the players haven't heard anything from BAI.

When contacted, BAI secretary general Ajay Singhania told TOI: "We will soon abolish this practice. BAI is entering into a three-year partnership with the Reliance Foundation and the incoming money from the sponsorship will help all those second line of players who are affected by this top-25 ranking rule."