Badminton Europe caught up with the German Women’s Singles player, Yvonne Li, before she heads to Erlangen for the European Mixed Team Qualification in Germany.
The 20-year-old will be looking to return to the form which saw her win the LI-NING Czech Open in September, when she beat the Turkish player, Neslihan Yigit, in the final.
As well as her badminton career, Li also attends University which she has to fit into her busy schedule.
What is your typical routine before and in a match?
- Of course, the warm-up is the most important thing before waiting for the match. I have set a routine for warming up, it sometimes varies a bit, but some key elements are always included in the warm-up.
- Checking my bag is also important, do I have enough water, is everything packed?
- When I played a good match and won, I try to maintain the same routine most of the time. For example, getting the same thing for breakfast, or playing with the same racket.
- I normally use the inner box to put my bag in. But actually, these routines are not set, and if I feel like it, I will do it differently, and have no problem in breaking the routine.
What are your Christmas break plans?
- I am planning to get some holidays and some downtime with my family and friends, so I can get new energy for the new season to come.
- It is quite hectic to be honest, because I study at university as well while playing badminton.
- I try to visit my family when I have a free weekend, but I do not get to see them in the middle of the week, because I live about four hours away from them by car.
How did you start Badminton?
- My father and my older brother played badminton, and when I was about five years old, I started to come along and played on a half-court with my dad, while my brother joined the badminton practice from the local club.
Look out for more content like this, as well as live coverage of our events over the coming week as our team head out to the Qualification stage of the European Mixed Team Championships.