“Stringing is a lonely job, but each strung piece is like your own art piece.” –  Cheng Bin, VICTOR Top Stringer

In tournaments, the players are the ones in the spotlight. People enjoy intense plays and the sound of hitting. There’s a group of people behind the scenes that assist the players to tune their rackets. People rarely notice these backstage heroes -- the stringers.

Most people don’t know a lot about racket stringers. Their job is to tune the rackets for the players, and it’s vital to players’ performance on the court. Stringers adjust the rackets with patience and profession. With their support, players will be able to play to their maximum potential.

Cheng Bin is a professional stringer on the VPS (VICTOR Professional Stringing) team with 18 years of experience. He started his career in a field-of-play maintenance crew in a Chinese league game. Stringing was not yet derived as an exclusive profession at that time. VICTOR noticed that the demand of stringing specialty from pro-players increased, so it decided to initiate a training program to nurture more stringing specialists while purchasing advanced machineries to enhance the quality of the service. The “VICTOR Stringing Method” was developed during the venture and now widely recognized and used by the community. Today, VICTOR proudly runs a prestigious stringing academy (VSI, VICTOR Stringing Institute) in China with dozens of professional stringers certified every year. Cheng is one of the elite graduates of the first-wave trainees, and now also a mentor in the program.

“Stringing can be learned within one or two days. However, mastering all string types and becoming proficient would take several years,” said Cheng, who considers himself a laid back person. However, he never goes easy on his tasks. The most exhausting part for a stringer is standing for more than ten or even twenty hours a day until your legs swell. You may also leave plenty of cuts on your fingers, which eventually will grow into thick layers of calluses. “If you don’t like the sport, it’s almost impossible to not give up,” said Cheng. He contributes a lot of love and time to badminton while observing the playing style and habits of individuals so he gets to quickly digest the needs when players come. He is also engaged in learning different techniques and methods all over the world to master the art of stringing.

Cheng encourages himself with the word “tenacity”. “Stringing is a lonely job,” he said. Piles of rackets waiting on a hotel desk. No one to talk to. “No one to really share the load either because everyone’s got a ridiculous amount as well especially in the first days of an event, but each strung piece is like your own art piece. The sense of accomplishment is indulging,” he said, adding that his proudest moment is when his well-tuned racket helped players win majors. In fact, VICTOR players have been winning major titles every year.

As a mentor in VICTOR Stringing Institute, Cheng demonstrates his skills and experiences to the students with theories and experiments. The students will have to enhance their sense of specialty, understand the importance of stringing and, most importantly, VICTOR’s stubbornness over the slightest detail. Cheng believes that “nothing can be perfect,” however, he continues to challenge and improve his standards as he pursues “perfection”. He knows that the chase is endless.