At 70 years old, he’s still hunting for his first win as a badminton pro – and loving every moment

“The world of badminton had changed in every aspect, and walking onto a show court was like a time warp,” said Webster.

“Looking back I had been playing in black-and-white TV, and now stepped into full-colour HD. It was simply awesome.”

In the years since, Webster has often been on the end of lopsided scorelines.

“When I first entered the tour, I had aims of more success, but it’s a strong tide to swim against when I never played as a junior,” he said.

“A couple of times I had to play with flu or migraine and suffer the consequences. But I accept it.

“It’s akin to climbing those big mountains again, when bad weather beat me back, and I went up again for a fifth attempt in total adversity, scaring myself to the point of my feet trembling me off the ice footholds that I cut, and pushing beyond where I could not reverse.”

Still, there have been memorable moments.

There was the first time he won a game on the BWF circuit, when he beat the Netherlands’ Rakesh Sharma 23-21 before losing 26-28, 15-21. It was 2022 and his opponent was 34 years old then.

“Being out on a badminton court when my opponents are generally 40 to 50 years younger, people tell me that is a victory,” said Webster.

“When I have performed well and the umpire says: ‘respect’, I feel too that I am playing for them, since most of them are former players and they too must stay engaged with the ‘addiction’.

“There’re so many people that wish they were on court playing because they either were badminton players or want to be a badminton player. But for many reasons they can’t play … I feel like that I’m fulfilling their desire.”

With his story garnering some attention online, fans have requested wefies and spare shirts while others ask how he’s maintained his mobility to play a sport that can be tough on the body.

“Much of that is because my whole family were incredibly active. I never stopped moving as a kid, I climbed trees, cycled thousands of miles a year, 200 miles in a day and went climbing most weekends,” he said.

“It made me tough and durable (and) my thought processes have not changed or aged in any way.”