Badminton Gold in the Air After Shock Exit of Champions

Nathan Robertson has never had much time for his old nickname of "Mr Scaramanga". But, if you must be compared to a Bond villain, then perhaps The Man With The Golden Gun is as good as any.

Until yesterday, gold was not on the agenda for Robertson and his mixed doubles partner, Gail Emms. Robertson regarded it as about as likely as growing Scaramanga's third nipple. "Realistically, we are not there to win," he had warned. "There is another pair who have lost only once in the last four years."

That pair was the Korean world champions Kim Dong Moon and Ra Kyung Min, unbeaten for 13 tournaments. They had intended to retire after winning Athens gold.

No longer. Robertson and Emms had left the Goudi Olympic complex, after a victory against the Chinese pair Chen Qiqiu and Zhao Tingting, psyching themselves up for a semi-final against the Koreans. Then Kim and Ra suffered a shock three-games defeat against the Danish pair Jonas Rasmussen and Rikke Olsen.

Emms was intent on curbing her excitement. "I was watching it in disbelief on the physio's table while I was having my leg massaged. My jaw just dropped. It has happened before. Kim bottled it in the semi-finals in Sydney and he has done it again."

Perhaps the wind is finally favouring Britain. Surprisingly, even the badminton players are talking about it. When there is a thermal low
over Turkey, the Meltimi wind funnels down from the mountains. Sailors, swimmers and rowers must combat it.

It might not be thought to be much of a problem inside the Goudi Olympic complex, but it is. The players refer to it as "drift" but there has been a hint of down-court zephyr that can disturb the players' accuracy.

Robertson and Emms face Rasmussen and Olsen tomorrow, knowing that they beat them in the European final in Geneva in April. The familiarity runs deeper: Robertson spends much of the year in Copenhagen and trains regularly with the Danish squad, taking advantage of the most professional set-up in Europe.

"Psychologically we don't fear them; we have beaten them the last three times," Emms said. "But now the Koreans are out, we have to do some new thinking about our game plan."

Robertson and Emms' communication was a feature of yesterday's victory. Robertson's form dipped as they led 9-4 in the second set, and they went set-point down at 14-13 before Emms's constant cajoling finally jabbed him back into form. They won 15-8, 17-15.

"We are both tough characters and we know when one or the other isn't playing to our potential," said Robertson. "We know what to say to each other to turn things around."

Emms talks of complementary styles and a natural telepathy on court. They play full-time in the Danish League for Hvidovre, with Emms commuting from her home in Milton Keynes. Both 27, they first played together in a Midlands
junior tournament at Chilwell Sports Hall. Both were weaned on badminton. Robertson's mother ran a junior club in their Nottinghamshire village. Nathan first played at six, Gail at four, her mother lobbing shuttles at her as she wielded a specially shortened racket.

Those childhood links engender a relationship of trust, allowing them to remain united under pressure, and avoid blame and recriminations. She habitually refers to Robertson as "he", as a married couple might. "He has so much flair," she said. "He is not robotic like the Koreans or Chinese. Fortunately, I can read him. It's best not to analyse it too much."

Robertson is the laid-back, natural talent benefiting from a more committed approach. Emms packs a vivacious personality into a 5ft 2in frame. She describes herself as "a blatant extrovert", though her promise to "smile for the rest of my life" if she wins Olympic gold might be pushing it.

Robertson benefits hugely from Emms's coaxing. There is no danger, as Scaramanga suggested to Bond, of their relationship finishing with pistols at dawn.

Meanwhile, a controversial line call last night ended Robertson's involvement in the men's doubles, viewed as Britain's second best medal chance. He and Anthony Clark lost 15-7, 15-12 to the Indonesians Eng Hian and Flandy Limpele.