It would be a tough ask to find a Badminton fan who hasn’t heard of Misha Zilberman. A player who catches the eye, as he hails from Israel, a nation not commonly associated with this racket sport we love so much. Also, many know Zilberman as a player who flies the European flag, putting in the miles and playing in various tournaments across the globe. Again, always standing out when scanning through the draw.
Here we have an opportunity to get to know Zilberman, the currently ranked 44th Men’s Singles player in the world. We first ask how the Moscow-born shuttler began playing Badminton?
-I started playing badminton when I was a baby, going with my mum to her practice when she was still a player.
Discussing his various training set-ups, Zilberman explains why he feels more settled now.
-Last 2 years I'm practicing in Israel with 3 sparing players that helping me a lot to improve my level.
Changing my game
Zilberman has had some great results this season and is only a handful of ranking places away from beating his record rank of 40 achieved in 2015. This year, the highlights have been the tournament win in the Lagos International, Nigeria. And two quarter-final finishes in the Russian Open and the Spain Masters. Commenting on this, Zilberman says
-I am really happy with my results this year. I started changing my game with many different small changes, like tactics. I am using my best skills for building my tactical game more than I did before. And of course, working harder than I have worked before.
This August as we all know, was World Championship time. Zilberman shares his experience and thoughts on his performance.
-I really did start my first round there very good. Beating Niluka Karunaratne from Sri Lanka for the first time (3-0 to Niluka before the match), which made me happy.
My second round was against Daren Liew and I lost to him 2-0. I was expecting to play better and to win at least one game, as I did when playing with him in January.
The Malaysian Daren Liew then as we saw went onto to surprise all to win a bronze medal.
35 and higher
Finally, we asked Zilberman to share his goals for the future.
-I am still building my new game and I really hope I will improve my game more. My current world ranking is 44, so I’m looking forward to getting 35 and higher...
-And also, I would like to qualify for my 3rd Olympics and improve my results from Rio 2016.