INDIA BADMINTON OPEN UNDER TIGHT SECURITY

By P.Vijian

NEW DELHI, March 12 (Bernama) -- Ten top badminton playing nations have
confirmed their participation in the Yonex-Sunrise India Open Gold 2009
tournament in Hyderabad, which will be played under tight security.

"We are not compromising on the security of the players and officials. The
Badminton World Federation's security expert, John Ahlert, was here for three
days and has reported to our authorities.

"There is no worry about security but we are taking it seriously. There will
be security convoy from the airport to the hotel, to the venue and to all
training halls for the players," Punnaiah Choudary, joint secretary of the
Badminton Association of India, told Bernama Thursday.

Indian officials in Hyderabad, capital of the southern state of Andra
Pradesh, are not side-lining security issues, after heavily armed gunmen
attacked a bus ferrying the Sri Lankan cricket team to the stadium in Lahore in
Pakistan last week, injuring several players.

Coming fresh from the just-concluded All-England Badminton tournament,
prominent shuttlers -- Malaysia's Lee Chong Wei, Indonesia's Hidaya Taufik and
Andrew Kurniwenu -- are among 200 players taking part in the second edition of
the tournament.

World No 1 Lee, the losing finalist in the All-England in Birmingham last
week, had been ranked number one and a total of 69 players are expected to vie
for the men's title.

Besides the host, China, England, France, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, Nepal,
Singapore and Taiwan will vie for the RM432,000 (US$120,000) prize money in the
tournament, to be held at the Gouch Bouli Indoor Stadium from March 24 to 29.

But this tournament is likely to miss the in-form Chinese players who
created history by winning all the five titles at the All-England.

"China are sending their second-line players. They are concentrating on the
Sudirman Cup and other super series. Compared with last year, this tournament
will be more exciting because more talented players will be in Hyderabad,"
Choudary said.

Malaysia will field 13 players in the men's singles and four in the women's
singles, including national top player Wong Mei Choo. Malaysia's is the
largest contingent with 39 members, including officials.
-- BERNAMA