0 Racket Handling and Footwork

"Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee" is an often-quoted line from former heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali. It is an excellent description of how you need to move and hit in badminton play. Good footwork entails reaching the bird as fast as possible with as little effort as possible, like butterfly. It gets you into the best position to execute your shots, or sting like a bee, while maintaining good balance and body control.

This step will get your hands and feet ready to execute efficiently. The various ways to hold your racket for a forehand, backhand, sterve, and other shots are discussed and illustrated later. Making racket handling and footwork a habit requires practice and repetition, along with some additional thought during play.

Good badminton players constantly move the racket around in their hands. The light racket makes it possible to use wrist action initiated by forearm rotation, and therefore you can manipulate the racket at a greater speed. In addition to the lighter racket, the lightness of the shuttle makes possible greater use of the wrist without loss of control. Your racket head may be moving at a terrific speed as you throw it out to meet the shuttle. This indicates you need a firm grip at contact. Ideally, your grip in badminton should provide flexible and effortless movement of the wrist and a comfortable and secure grip with your dominant hand.

Source:

Grice, Tony. 2008. Badminton: Steps to Success. Human Kinetics Inc.: USA.