New Delhi, Feb. 11 -- The Indian badminton circuit was dealt a major blow on Monday when the Badminton World Federation (BWF) announced its World Tour cycle from 2027 to 2030.

While India Open maintained its status as a Super 750 event, the BWF announced that India will host only two World Tour events - a drop from four - from the next cycle. Odisha Masters and Guwahati Masters - both Super 100 events - got shelved but what made it worse was that a legacy event like the Syed Modi India International in Lucknow was downgraded from Super 300 to 100.

"These competitions were good for the country," said former chief coach U Vimal Kumar. "I'm a little concerned. It is sad and disappointing for the players because badminton is really explodin...