THE GIRL NEXT DOOR


TAI TZU YING:


She is very


aggressive and has so many deception shots. Her game is of high quality and she is very


humble Reigning Olympic Champion Carolina Marin


Very often, Tai tries new shots on court, sometimes


even during crucial points, and even when she makes mistakes, she keeps smiling. However, when they work, her deception can be lethal


year so far with two Superseries titles, Indonesia and Hong Kong, and the Superseries Finals in Dubai, leading to the climb all the way to the top of the rankings to be the first player from Chinese Taipei to be ranked World No.1.


Tai Tzu Ying has one secret to performing so well: pressure does not seem to affect her in spite of her young age despite revealing not having any specific mental preparation: she prepares the same way for every tournament with a relaxed mindset at all times.


“I think the fact that I am quite relaxed on court could be the reason why I perform and why I am able to play a good game. I just want to enjoy the sport, without giving myself too much pressure” she says.


Her talent also lies in her style: attacking – one of her smashes was recorded at 360 km/h at last year’s Yonex All England – but also deceptive. “She is very aggressive and has so many deception shots. Her game is of high quality and she is very humble” says one of her main opponents on the tour, the reigning Olympic Champion Carolina Marin.


Very often, Tai tries new shots on court, sometimes even during crucial points, and even when she makes mistakes, she keeps smiling. However, when they work, her deception can be lethal.


Her game style is described by many commentators as one of the most pleasant to watch in Women’s Singles and her goal this year is just to maintain her form, improve her skills and overall performance, with Tokyo 2020 in the back of her mind. As well as working hard on court, she also likes to work out in the gym – she often shows how she improves on her “six pack” on Facebook, getting hundreds of thousands of “likes” for the pictures she posts.


The Taiwanese is a fan of Italy, enjoys good food, hardly ever goes to sleep after 11pm in order to wake up early and loves to spend time with her family and her friends who are mostly from outside the badminton world. She describes herself as “humble, fearless and not paying attention to what other people think”.


When asked what part of her personality she likes the least, she laughs and answers: “I have a strong personality!”. Opponents beware!


INTERNATIONALBADMINTONMAGAZINE March 2017 | 21 www.isportgroup.com/InternationalBadmintonMagazine


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