India to host Thomas and Uber Cups in 2014

After over a week of murmurings in the Indian press, the Badminton World Federation (BWF) made the official announcement yesterday that the distinction of hosting the 2014 Thomas and Uber Cups would go to New Delhi, India.

“India are no strangers to hosting world-class badminton events, having hosted the World Championships in 2009, the World Junior Championships in 2008 and the Commonwealth Games in 2010. This is also the third year India are hosting a leg of the BWF World Superseries,” a BWF press release quoted its Deputy President Paisan Rangsikitpho as saying.

“Badminton is also developing at a rapid pace in India with many players making their mark on the international stage and we are happy to award the hosting rights to India.”

“I remember the first time we held the India Open, there were a few shortcomings. Now we are at a high level, we are confident that we can host any of the highest-level competitions,” added Badminton Association of India President Dr. Akhilesh Das Gupta.

This is India’s first time hosting the Thomas and Uber Cup finals.  It is also the first time the event – which is the BWF’s men’s and women’s team world badminton championships – will not have continental qualifying tournaments.  Instead, the participating nations will be decided based on world team rankings.