BAI Shifts India Open 2028 To Guwahati Over Republic Day Clashes; Bids to Host Thomas & Uber Cup In Delhi

The India Open Super 750 is likely to move out of the national capital for its 2028 edition, with Guwahati set to host the prestigious tournament for a year due to a scheduling clash with Republic Day celebrations.

The tournament has traditionally been staged at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in New Delhi. However, the 2028 edition is scheduled from January 25 to 30, a period that overlaps with Republic Day-related events in the capital. The National Centre of Excellence for Badminton in Guwahati is expected to serve as the venue instead.

Badminton Association of India secretary Sanjay Mishra explained that holding the tournament in Delhi during that period would create difficulties with player movement, training arrangements and the overall conduct of the event.

“The 2027 India Open will happen in India. But for 2028, we might shift it to Guwahati because around 25th January to 30th January clashes with the 26th January celebration. In this area, it becomes very difficult for players’ movement, for practice, and for the tournament as well,” said Mishra after the conclusion of the World Championships.

The BWF's calendar has India Open scheduled from February 2 to 7 in 2027, before it returns to the January 25-30 window in 2028. Mishra said the tournament is expected to return to Delhi in 2029, depending on whether the international federation makes any changes to the scheduling window.

“The event will return to Delhi in 2029 and we will see if BWF will change the window then,” he added.

The decision also comes after the 2026 India Open faced criticism over Delhi's poor air quality, with calls for the tournament to be moved away from the January-February period. However, the BAI secretary maintained that changing the dates is complicated because the BWF controls the global calendar.

“Changing the window is not in our hands. BWF decides the calendar and it decided upto 2027 and changing the date of one event will mean messing up the whole calendar,” he said.

India Enters Race To Host 2028 Thomas And Uber Cup

India is also looking to secure another major badminton hosting assignment after successfully staging the 2026 World Championships in New Delhi.

The Badminton Association of India has submitted a bid to host the 2028 Thomas and Uber Cup Finals, with the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium proposed as the venue.

“We have bid for the 2028 edition of Thomas and Uber Cup. The event will be held at the IG Stadium,” said Mishra.

Several countries are competing for the hosting rights, but Mishra believes India's successful World Championships campaign has given its bid a strong boost.

“There are other countries in the race also but we are confident of winning the bid with the show we had put up in Delhi for seven days,” said Mishra.

India last hosted the Thomas and Uber Cup in 2014, when the team championships were held at the Siri Fort Sports Complex in New Delhi.

Having recently hosted the World Championships, India is now hoping to add another major BWF event to its international hosting portfolio with the 2028 Thomas and Uber Cup Finals.