New Delhi, March 1 Two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu on Sunday described a "tense and scary" ordeal at the Dubai International Airport, where she and her Indonesian coach were stranded after an explosion occurred near the area where they were staying amid escalating tensions in the Gulf region.
The disruption comes after the United States and Israel launched a major offensive on Iran, leading to retaliatory missile strikes across parts of the Gulf, including the United Arab Emirates.
The developments forced multiple airlines to cancel or reroute flights.
Sindhu, who is scheduled to compete at the All England Open Badminton Championships in Birmingham starting March 3, has been stuck in Dubai since Saturday after flight operations were suspended following airspace closures triggered by missile strikes in the region.
"Once our flight landed in Dubai, events beyond our control began to unfold. Shortly after, the airspace was shut down and the last few hours have been extremely tense. We could hear the sounds of interceptions overhead," Sindhu told
"A few hours later there was an explosion very close to where we were holed up at Dubai airport. My coach was barely about 100 metres away when it happened and had to quickly move out of the area. Experiencing something like this in such close quarters truly shakes the very foundation you’re built on," she added.
Her coach, Irwansyah Adi Pratama, also confirmed the incident to
