What we do is nothing like the portrayal of badminton as a gentle game played in a church hall. Badminton can be fun and relaxing, but as professionals, this sport is our heart and soul and passion, and our games are fast and aggressive.

In countries like China and Indonesia, badminton is like a religion. Players get mobbed in the street. In China, it is a national sport, and Lin Dan, their star player, is treated like David Beckham.

I think badminton has a real legacy with more youngsters taking up the sport. Badminton has done really well in that regard compared to other sports.

I think if people were to look at badminton and tennis, they'd see they're actually very similar; the profile would increase, and we might be in a better position as a sport.

In our sport, there's only two people, so if you're not winning, then you're losing.

I've always wanted to be in journalism. I even started a course at Loughborough doing media studies. I like all sports, and I am keen on writing. But I thought that while I was still young, I ought to make a real go of it at badminton. So I have put all my focus on playing sport instead of writing about it.