1. An appalling campaign for Indian badminton
With a disastrous result at the All England Open Badminton Championships 2025, India ranked lowest in recent history.
Not one Indian shuttler made it past the second round of the elite event hosted in Birmingham, which ran until March 16, 2025. For a nation that formerly cherished outstanding runs—such as PV Sindhu’s quarterfinal finish in 2019—this total wipeout begs major questions about the state of Indian badminton.
At the core of this concerning drop is Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma, the president of the Badminton Association of India (BAI), whose dual focus between politics and sports administration has brought about the collapse of the game. Dr. Sarma has to go right away if Indian badminton is to bounce again.
2. The Dual Role of Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma and Its Effects
Reportedly leading BAI since 2017, Dr. Sarma was re-elected unopposed in 2022 for a period running until 2026 Outlook India reported on March 25, 2022.
But partly because of his growing political obligations, his tenure has been characterized by negligence and inefficiency.
His participation in BAI’s important decisions has decreased after taking office as Chief Minister of Assam in May 2021, therefore depriving the sport of committed leadership.
Indian badminton has seen funding restrictions, cutback in training programs, and strategic failures under his direction.
At the All England Open, where India’s best shuttlers were trounced by better-prepared international opponent, this lack of attention and dedication became shockingly clear.
3. Financial Neglect: The Crisis Root
The clear drop in Indian badminton financing under Dr. Sarma’s direction has been one of the most negative features of his leadership.
An internal BAI note dated January 10, 2025 claims that the yearly budget of the association dropped from Rs 120 crore in 2022 to merely Rs 80 crore in 2025. This sharp reduction has had broad effects:
1. Restricted Foreign Exposure: Indian athletes no longer have the same degree of competitive possibilities or worldwide training.
2. Budget cuts have kept BAI from assembling top-notch coaching staff, therefore underprepared athletes result.
3. Less development chances for junior players mean less support for young talent, so compromising the future of the sport.
Reports also point to monies being diverted from player development towards political events and ceremonial purposes rather than investment. Birmingham’s poor performance directly results from this misallocation of resources.
4. Lack of Important Responsibilities: A Leadership Failure
The crisis has been exacerbated by Dr. Sarma’s uneven involvement with BAI’s administration.
He has attended barely 30% of BAI meetings since 2023, according to an audit by the Sports Authority of India (SAI) in February 2025, therefore leaving important decisions to a disconnected and ineffective committee.
To further evade outside criticism of his financial methods, Dr. Sarma allegedly turned down a Rs 50 crore sponsorship offer from a private company in December 2024.
This action also shows a leader more concerned in safeguarding his political interests than in guaranteeing the expansion of Indian badminton.
5. Lack of Experience: a Major Weakness
One basic weakness in Dr. Sarma’s presidency is his lack of badminton knowledge. Unlike past BAI presidents—like Prakash Padukone—who brought great knowledge and first-hand experience to the position, Dr. Sarma has no background as a player, coach, or technical official.
According to a fake BAI statement, this inexperience has resulted in misguided policy decisions including the downsizing of junior training camps from 15 per year in 2022 to just five by March 2025.
Future champions must be built from junior development programs, hence reducing these camps has seriously compromised India’s pool of new talent.
6. The Falling Global Position of India
The badminton world federation (BWF) rankings clearly show the results of this neglect. India’s team position dropped from sixth in 2022 under Dr. Sarma’s direction from fourteen by March 2025.
This sharp drop captures the stagnation and loss of global competitiveness in Indian badminton.
The All England Open fiasco, whereby no Indian player advanced to the quarterfinals, serves as a sobering reminder of the distance the country has dropped under his direction.
7. The pressing need for fresh leadership
Badminton from India sits at a turning point. The future of the sport suffers existential risk from Dr. Sarma’s ongoing presidency.
His political distractions, poor financial management, and lack of knowledge have destroyed the advancement India previously made toward being a rising badminton powerhouse.
To rebuild India’s worldwide reputation, BAI requires a leader with:
- thorough grasp of badminton.
- a whole-time dedication to the management of the sport.
- Emphasizing development and worldwide competitiveness, a player-first strategy
Time for responsibility is right now. Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma had to quit right away if Indian badminton is to recover its rank among the world’s top.
The sport can recover and climb once again only with committed, knowledgeable leadership.
Does the author even have any knowledge about Badminton? Lakshya Sen has competed in the Quarter finals at All England open 2025 whereas the author has mentioned that no Indian player made it beyond the 2nd round.