A strange contradiction in sport is that although you must be single minded in achieving your goals, you must also be able to work in a team environment.  In certain situations and disciplines, your selfish ambition must be counter-acted by your willingness to work flawlessly with others.

There are few sports where this is more apparent than in badminton or tennis, where you can play man on man or woman on woman singles in the morning, before having to change physical and mental tack to play doubles in the afternoon.  Not only that, but you may also have to alter your game and mindset depending on whether you are playing same sex or mixed doubles.

All in all, it is a complicated process for any young athlete.  But it is one that Watson Briggs, 20 from Renfrew, has taken in his stride.  Need proof?  In 2004, he became the Scottish under-17 singles, doubles and mixed doubles champion.  Since then the Scottish Institute of Sport athlete has gone on to win many more events, including an under-19 Wimbledon title, every bit as prestigious as its tennis equivalent.

So it is no surprise that Watson has earned the position as our ‘Rising Star’ for August, particularly considering his heroics with mixed doubles partner Imogen Bankier (or as Watson calls her, ‘Imo,’ who he went to school with since he was 12) at the World Team Championships in Glasgow in June, where they were Scotland’s most successful pairing.

In The Winning Zone managed to chisel a gap into Watson’s busy schedule to sit down for a quick Q&A at Glasgow’s National Badminton Academy…

WZ: How did you get into Badminton?

WB: It was at David Lloyd’s gym in Renfrew.  I had been a member since I was about five, then they brought in a new purpose built badminton hall and it started from there!

WZ: Were you playing casually or did you decide you wanted to play it competitively?

WB: I was playing casually to start with, but then I really liked it, and my coach at David Lloyd spurred me on. My best friend played as well so I played with him all the time.

WZ: Did you ever have to choose between badminton and other sports?

WB: Yes I was in the Scotland squad for squash when I was thirteen. Basically we used to go to David Lloyd and play badminton, squash and tennis all day. I was good at badminton and squash, so I had to pick.  I chose badminton because the guy I used to play squash with always beat me!  He got to number one in Europe when he was nineteen.

WZ: Were you always into racket sports?

WB: I played rugby and cricket at school.  I really liked cricket.

WZ: Is it true badminton is the fastest racket sport?

WB: Yes, the faster smashes are faster than the fastest tennis serve. A badminton court is half the size of a tennis court so you are moving faster than tennis.  It takes more short sharp movements, with a different technique.

WZ: What would a typical training day look like?

WB: Through the week we do three physical sessions, like weights or circuits, followed by a badminton session. The badminton is for techniques and skills and the physical stuff is for jumping higher and faster.

WZ: Can you make a career out of badminton?

WB: Yes you can, they have changed the tournaments now so there is more money in them. There are different classes of funding now, and you can get up to £20,000 a year funding.

WZ: What are your long-term goals?

WB: The way funding works is once you go up a level you cannot go down a level so you need to improve to get to the next level. You pretty much go as far as you can until the funding is cut, which is quite severe.

WZ: And what is your ultimate ambition?

WB: To play in the 2012 Olympics  I’ll be 25 or 26, which is pretty much the perfect age.

WZ: Is it the same as most sports where you hit your peak in your mid to late 20s?

WB: Yes, though it might be slightly different for doubles and singles.  I am a mixed doubles specialist, and they can keep going on.  One of the best players in the world is 36.

WZ: Why are the Asian nations so good? (China, India and Malaysia dominate the rankings in all events)

WB: They train so intensively from such a young age.  Though obviously we go to school and things are not as intense are there. But I think they are probably worn out by the time they are 25 years old.

WZ: Do you think that’s something which should be addressed in Scotland?

WB: Its not just Scotland, it’s more throughout Europe.  The Europeans tend to hit peaks later on which I think is good. It’s a whole different way of life.

WZ: Do you have to alter your entire lifestyle around badminton?

WB: Yes there is not really such a thing as a tournament season now.  It used to run from September through to June but now it’s year round.

When you go away it’s usually from a Tuesday through Thursday and Sunday so I need to get everything done early in the week. I am trying to get all my university stuff organised for during the week, and then my training.

WZ: Do you need to make a lot of sacrifices as well?

WB: Yes but is all worth it in the end, trying to get a balance is the main thing.

WZ: What sort of sacrifices have you had to make?

WB: Well first I took a year out for studying, I would have like to have gone to a University away from home but I couldn’t because this is where the national centre is.  I missed a lot of social things like mate’s birthdays and things like that.

WZ: Are you happy to do that?

WB: Yes, though every now and then you need to let your hair down.

WZ: At the level you are at what is more important for you – performance or winning?

WB: Just winning.  I am focusing on winning.  Obviously I would like to play my best all the time but if you are playing crap and scrape through a win then fine.  It’s all done on results rather than performance.

WZ: For you to win is it down to having the ability against the other player on the day, or is it down to having the fight and determination to beat the guy?

WB: With me it’s a mental thing, I have the ability, but sometimes my head fills up.  It’s not so much about getting annoyed, it’s more about concentration and getting into the right place mentally for it.

WZ: What do you do to address that?

WB: I try and keep the same routine, because more often that not if it is a really important game then I will play really well, so I try to do the same thing that I do when I do play well.

WZ: What’s the difference between playing doubles and mixed?  Do you have to change your style depending on whether you are with Imogen [Bankier] or Andrew [Bowman]?

WB: Yes it’s very different but I have played with [both of] them for years and years I know the way their mind works and you know the way each other works.

I have been swapping partners around though, andsometime you don’t really know the way they play.  I am much more comfortable playing mixed.

WZ: Is the game physically different?

WB: Men’s doubles is mostly about hitting it hard all the time but mixed has more movement. There are more tactics involved in mixed.

WZ: How do you cope with pressure?

WB: Pressure is usually a good thing for me, it helps me focus.  It’s the more trivial matches I have trouble with, and on the bigger matches I can work ok.

WZ: At that level in badminton how much of it is mental and how much is physical?

WB: At the highest level its all mental, especially in doubles, because everyone is so close. I don’t know if you have seen much badminton, but the Chinese guys are in each others faces shouting.  They are up at the net, fist pumping at you and shouting after every point. It gets pretty animated, it’s probably very different to what people imagine it to be.  There is such a fine margin between everything, people approach it in different ways but some people like to get really aggressive and others are more laid back.

WZ: Can you not use your big aggressive Scottish accent in there and start shouting back at them?!

WB: It’s hard to intimidate the Asians, as they are pretty intimidating themselves!

WZ: Fair enough! Thanks Watson, good luck.

WB: Thanks.

RO

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