Serve: forehand vs backhand

[Mag]

How do you people feel about the tactical advantages or disadvantages of forehand serve vs the backhand serve? Do you use both kinds? Why do you choose one over the other? (Other than the obvious that forehand is a bit better for long serves)

I myself tend to go for backhand serve in doubles and forehand in singles, rather routinely. But recently I watched a (taped) game where Peter Gade who normally serves long forehands suddenly kept doing short backhand serves. I guess he had his tactical reasons, as his opponent was a keen smasher...

By the way, I read that the backhand serve is a "novelty" in badminton. Apparently it was introduced by Asian players in the 50's.

[jayes]

I use forehand and backhand in singles and doubles. I'm not sure what the tactical advantages but I like varieties. :)

[Kelvin]

I don't know where I got that from... I remember hearing it somewhere before... anyways...
I use both serves, just to mix it up. Some times I'll even serve a longer serve with back hand... however, it's very ineffective for high serves...
That's just best left to our good ole forehands. :)

[marshall]

I use the forehand serve for singles and doubles, because when I first learned to serve I had better results with the forehand. Later on a coach told us that the forehand serve was more deceptive but was harder to control. He also looked at my serve and said it was OK. IMHO, accuracy is not hard to achieve. Just practice. People tell me they don't know where I'm going to serve, so maybe the forehand is deceptive. Sometimes in a singles game I like to do a short doubles-type serve or maybe a drive down the center line just to keep the receiver alert.

Some people say that the backhand serve puts the receiver at a disadvantage if you are wearig a white shirt because he won't be able to see the shuttle as well. That seems a minor advantage if it's true. A bigger advantage to backhand is you can stand at the short service line, extend your arms toward the net, and the shuttle will start its flight at least 2 feet closer to the net.

Of course, what really matters is acuracy, consistency, and keeping short serves low over the net with enough speed to give the receiver less time to decide what to do. If I could do those things all the time, plus serve a long, high singles bird that came straight down on the backline I'd be happy.

[jayes]

Aren't you a risk taker! :) ... serving high long serve with back hand . I never tried that before and will try it with my social play. ;-)

I love the forehand serve though - it is much more unpredictable than the backhand serve.

[Kelvin]

hehehe...
Actually the trick, is to flick it up fast enough so your opponent doesn't have enough time to reach back for it.

It's pretty effective to take opponents off guard.
However, don't do it too often, because the opponent will eventually catch on...
I personally use that sort of serve as an alternative to the 'drive' serve.
Most people I know that use the 'drive' serve, serve illegally.
By doing the backhand flick, I can't be called for serving illegally.
Works really well. :)

[Kelvin]

hehehe...
Actually the trick, is to flick it up fast enough so your opponent doesn't have enough time to reach back for it.

It's pretty effective to take opponents off guard.
However, don't do it too often, because the opponent will eventually catch on...
I personally use that sort of serve as an alternative to the 'drive' serve.
Most people I know that use the 'drive' serve, serve illegally.
By doing the backhand flick, I can't be called for serving illegally.
Works really well. :)

[olli]

I do backhand serves in doubles and forhand in singles,too.If I would do backhand serves in singles, my opponent will easily find out that it will be always short ,cause i'm not able to flick it real high and long.And if he plays well and found out he'll often fake me.
In doubles forehandservers can serve from the side (they stand at the T and serve a bit far from the body) , the bird seems to get out ,but in the end it in, you all know!?
Time ago I used to do forehandserves in doubles, because I could better flick, but my style was illegal ,I think ,because of suddenly changing speed.

We call "flick serves","swip serves" , don't you use this word?Never heard of flick before.(learning a lot things here ;-))
I really would like to know the story of backhandserves,too.Asians invents lot of funny things, don't they?Things like the slice services.

[Pebulutangkis]

in doubles i always use the backhand serve, i either do it short if my opponent in not standing right at the front service line, but if he is waiting right at the line i tend to flick it. anyway my backhand short serve is low and sharp enough, so my friends cant smash it, of coz only occasionally if i make an error.

in singles use the forehand serve, i do backswing on all serves but sometimes its the high 1 sometimes its the low serve juz for deception

[Aaron]

how do you do a slice serve? i've seen ppl do it before but i can't seem to do it....i can do it like once in maybe 20 tries? they're really good if you can get them to work. and i mainly use forehand serves in Singles cuz it's easier to hit it high and far back....and i use backhand in doubles....i seem to be able to aim better usin backhand for some reason.....so i think dat it's basically what you can execute...there's no use serving a serve that smashes the other guy/girl up for a smash. So maybe you should just use what yer good with and try to stick with it and practice accuracy....

[May]

i serve forehand all the time, singles or doubles.my backhand serve is terrible. It is usually short. The flick serve is the backhand one ryt????? I can't really serve high now because I play mostly doubles, and a high serve isn't too suitable to my game.

[Cheung]

Never heard of a "swipe" serve ever! That's interesting since it's been called "flick" serve ever since I started (long, long time ago)

[Ricky]

My situation is similar - I can do forehand high serve pretty well, and not too bad for forehand short serve, but my backend server is very inconsistent. I had tried to improve my back hand serve (as I mainly play double and many people use back hand serve in double), but I finally give up as I find that I can also mislead my opponent with forehand serves alone. In fact, I find that some famous players also use only forehand serves. Of course, I would like to improve my back hand serve as well, but it won't be a high priority item on my list.

[May]

yeah. My backhand one is short and high, perfect conditions for a smash.

[Steplantis]

As far as getting a good backhand serve is concerned there`s a few things that will help you get a good serve

1. When you`re holding the shuttle point the cork towards you, don`t hold it vertically as it`s hard to hit the shuttle cleanly that way. Also by holding the shuttle with the cork towards you, when the shuttle leaves your racquet it travels on a very flat trajectory which is what you want so it just skims the net.

2. Try to use as little wrist movement as possible in the short backhand serve - keep the wrist locked and think more of the movement of your forearm. Using the wrist introduces too much room for error and as you`re only hitting the shuttle a short distance you don`t need much power.

3. You can also increase the difficulty of the serve for the receiver by slighly underhitting the shuttle - by this I mean instead of moving the racquet in a flat plane horizontally ( your forearm moves forward at 90degrees to the net) try moving the racquet from about 20degrees above the shuttle downwards in a straight line. This way you don`t hit the shuttle straight on but with a slight angle which means you have more room for error if you hit too hard, as the shuttle should stay on a flat trajectory and fly quicker into the receiver`s court. However you must resist the urge to use your wrist to get this slice effect - keep your wrist locked and just use your forearm.

4. Lastly is don`t hit the serve too quickly - give your self time to get prepared and then you decide when to play the serve. If you get into a "quick rhythm" way of serving it makes it easy for the receiver to anticipate when the shuttle is going to leave your racquet, and then all he has to worry about is the direction of the serve. Try to vary the time you wait until you play the serve to keep the receiver guessing.

I guess the last point is more for advanced levels of play - you should try and get a good serve action first before you worry about changing your serve timing.

P.S Point 3 also makes it easier to deceive when you do play a "flick" as the receiver is used to seeing your racquet move from above the shuttle to below - when you then use the wrist to make the flick it`s difficult to read the serve.

[Mag]

Olli, in Swedish the word for flik serve is "svipp-serve", so I guess your confusion is language-related. It's the same thing.

Which brings me to another language question:
When you do a quick smash more or less with no arm movement, just a quick flick of the wrist above the head, it's called "stick-smash" in Swedish. Is there a specific word for this in English?

[Cheung]

Half smash? Clip smash?

[Cheung]

I like that point 3.
I shall try it out! Is this why some International players have really good flick serves? Haven't noticed it before.

[Mag]

Mmmm... or maybe it's just "wrist smash"?

[viver]

Excellent description of the backhand serve. In fact I see lot of people when teaching this serve forget to mention about the wrist locking. In my opinion this is crucial for having a good and consistent backhand serve.

As for hitting underneath the shuttle (point 3) I noticed that Park Joo Bong and Kim Moon So do that and produces a 'tumble' on the shuttle: it rises and before crossing the net it seems that the cork suddenly points downwards. I believe this makes it more difficult for the receiver to attack their serve.

[Neil Nicholls]

bit of a blast from the past, but...


I like that point 3. I shall try it out!

Cheung, how did it go?

[peyter]

Good point on NOT using the wrist.

I have been a really wristy player...no wonder my flick serves goes all the way out.

[graphite]

When I play singles, I usually use my forehand serve since I get a better high serve with it but when I play doubles or mixed, I use the backhand serve since I have a better short serve with my backhand plus it takes less time for the shuttle to travel over the net to the opponents court than with the forhand. My deception on serves kind of sucks so there isn't much different with the two serves. :)

[gerry]

Originally posted by Mag


Which brings me to another language question:
When you do a quick smash more or less with no arm movement, just a quick flick of the wrist above the head, it's called "stick-smash" in Swedish. Is there a specific word for this in English?

Wasn't it called a "dink smash" in the past.

[gerry]

Originally posted by Steplantis


2. Try to use as little wrist movement as possible in the short backhand serve - keep the wrist locked and think more of the movement of your forearm. Using the wrist introduces too much room for error and as you`re only hitting the shuttle a short distance you don`t need much power.



I served like this for a long time but now do the opposite to the above, I now only use my wrist while serving backhand, no arm movement at all, so instead of pushing I'm actually tapping the shuttle, my low serve is rarely attacked but my flick serve is undetectable even when I've served to international players.

[Maradona]

my low serve is rarely attacked but my flick serve is undetectable even when I've served to international players.

I used to use a lot of wrist, but I found that flicking with the wrist caused my forearm muscles to tense prior to hitting the flick -- effectively giving away what Im doing. Using the locked wrist and mostly forearm motion, when I want to flick serve I simply at the last possible second flick my wrist -- I find this a lot more deceptive because it looks so much like my regular short serve. Also, its the same for serving out wide on either service side, at the last possible second I change the racquet angle slightly.

Am I doing something fundamentally wrong with the wrist only flick that is giving it away?

[sharkboy]

in singles I always serve forearm, with this you can get a long serve, and when they're not paying attention you can sneak in a little short serve for a point or two, usually I would push it very far back on the serves, and then a little one.

for doubles it's the other way around, backhand, and afterwards when they are not expecting it do a backhand serve with a little more power to push them back a little



i;m happy with my serves

good day!
:)

[Neil Nicholls]

3. You can also increase the difficulty of the serve for the receiver by slighly underhitting the shuttle - by this I mean instead of moving the racquet in a flat plane horizontally ( your forearm moves forward at 90degrees to the net) try moving the racquet from about 20degrees above the shuttle downwards in a straight line. This way you don`t hit the shuttle straight on but with a slight angle which means you have more room for error if you hit too hard, as the shuttle should stay on a flat trajectory and fly quicker into the receiver`s court.

tried this out on Friday (in a match !). Practised it during the warm up and it worked well so I used it throughout the match.

[Cheung]

Originally posted by Neil Nicholls
bit of a blast from the past, but...



Cheung, how did it go? Sorry ! , LOL, I forgot. However, I did meet one person who did serve like this (from UK). It was very interesting, because the shuttle would somehow shoot off the racquet much faster than I was expecting. Coupled with him being lefthanded, I had to readjust quite a bit. Thans for bringing up the topic again.

Will try to remember to experiment with this one again but difficult since I'm playing more singles.

[fhchiang]

let's put it in a simple way..

backhand server(mostly low serves)

is more to attacking serve...

while forehand is more like a defensive serve...


both got advantage and disadvantage

[krnkpboy]

recently
my friend got dis one serve
forehand
he slices the hell outa the bird
he just wacks it and looks like its gonna be the really high serve to the bak but its a short serve dat lands on the line
problem is he gets lyk 1 over every 5 serves

[Dill]

In doubles I serve always backhands, the reason is deception more than anything else, when I start a game I try to hit just inside the T-junction with a low serve so the opponent thinks I have a good consistent service. Then I push them wide with a slice on the outside tram line and short service line, because they then change position to get to the two alternatives I introduce a flick which is very deceptive. If I need to bring them back to the front after using the flick one too many times I serve short, bearing in mind that there are very high odds that they will hit it back because they went for all the serves that hit the lines earlier on in the game.

The aim is that I use my serve as a tool of movement and also to give me the psychological edge knowing that I can make people go where I want (hopefully, but it doesn't always work out as I intend).

As for singles I have started to alternate between the usual high forehand serve and the short backhand, the short backhand usualy results in a net reply so more of a chance for an easy knock off. I only use a forehand deceptive short serve once or twice per game because I know my opponent will not expect it because I have made the concious change to a backhand serve for a short one and they think the forehand will result in a high serve.

[shuttlejunkie]

I always serve backhand in mens doubles and in mixed. A bit of a debate though at my club as to whether to serve fore or backhand in mixed (as the shuttle generally has a bit further to travel). I tend to have my lady partner standing on the same side of the court as me when I'm serving so from the right hand side, serving forehand would be a bit awkward (as I wouldn't be serving "round" her).

I almost always serve high and forehand in singles.

Another tip for serving backhand: try and hold the shuttle as far as you can comfortably in front of you. It gives the shuttle less far to travel and encourages you to be on your toes

[Brave_Turtle]

In double I always serve back hand. In single I discovered tha back hand serve was very effecive especially against good smashers.

I'm usually fast enough to recover a clear or a drop shot so it's about 70% back hand serve and 30% forehand serve in signle.

[taneepak]

Another tip for serving backhand: try and hold the shuttle as far as you can comfortably in front of you. It gives the shuttle less far to travel and encourages you to be on your toes

I wonder how far can one exploit this technique of aiming for the shortest serve in doubles? Being tall helps, as the shuttle has a shorter distance to travel. Can you stand on your toes and lean as far forward as you can, without losing your balance, to serve? Perfecting the shortest doubles serve and an effective flick serve can be a lethal combination.

[Gollum]

I know several players who stand high on their toes for a backhand serve. I prefer to stand more comfortably and balanced, since it allows me to deliver a more consistent serve under pressure and to be ready for the reply.

[lalanthier]

Singles is forehand, end of story. Simply because I can't replicate the height of the singles deep serve with a backhand serve. And for me forehand is far easier.

Doubles/Mixed: 2 types of backhand, 2 forehands.

I know it might sound strange, but I do treat them as different serves because I hold the bird differently each way. I enjoy the mix up because I've taught myself to be able to serve deep, drive it, short, cross court with almost all of the five serves. It's just good deception, and when I change my serve, I change the pace of the game. It's sometimes refreshing.

Backhand, in front of me: this serve is strictly short. I have not learned to do a long serve with this shot yet, but it's the standard shot that everyone is taught basically. Below the waste, in front of you as high as possible without violating the rules. This shot is strictly with the wrist because of deseption because drawing the arm back is both illegal, and often tiems inaccurate.

Backhand a little to the side. This shot I do use my arm, because this one is my favoured drive serve, but it still has a good angle to generate a good cross court. I usually start off using this serve.

Forehand: I hold it the same way I would in singles. This usually lands as a deep and high serve. However, I do send a short serve with this as well. The only thing I do not like about serving short with this serve is because you need the arm, you must swing slower to get a shorter serve - and that's a giveaway.

Forehand mid court. I lean a good bit back for this serve, and hold the bird slightly lower, and slightly more in front. This one is another drive serve. However, I do this serve differently in that I do a swing, and the last minute I slice it to create a quick shot that dies rapidly. This can replicate the long serve as well. And this is good for a short serve.

I'm not sure how many players pay attention to the serving givaways. I often stare at the player and their hand to see what hte shot will be. 7/10 times I'm right. When it's a backhand, and they plan to serve deep they usually jerk a bit, or draw back their hand slightly. Likewise, to know which corner their aiming to you stare at their eyes - most players realize its a giveaway so they usually end up serving somewhere else. however, you look just in case. When they plan to fake their shot, it often becomes obvious in the body movement. The body is usually more tense when the player is trying to serve to a different place other than where they are looking.

There's a lot of art to the serve. It's amazing how many variations one can find.

[Gollum]

Backhand, in front of me: this serve is strictly short. I have not learned to do a long serve with this shot yet, but it's the standard shot that everyone is taught basically. Below the waste, in front of you as high as possible without violating the rules. This shot is strictly with the wrist because of deseption because drawing the arm back is both illegal, and often tiems inaccurate.

Er, since when is drawing the arm back illegal on service? :confused:

[bluejeff]

I think serving by forehand in singles has advantages on either serving short or long with the same pose.
Serving by backhand in doubles is very common, but I am not good at backhand serves, so I usually use forehand-short serves in doubles. I seldom use backhand serves though because I think there is a greater chance of making mistakes. (I don't have that neat of movements)

[bluejeff]

I was watching videos of Thomas cup final, the 2nd game, mens double, China vs. Denmark, JR/Lars vs. Cai/Fu last night :)

Chinese team was arguing with JR's serves during the game, where JR likes to place the racquet in front of the shuttle before serve, and then, go around the shuttle and serve. But judges said it's find, and eventually chinese team just stop arguing.

I think it's tricky and on border line.....but should be OK since it's continuous and one stroke anyway. (also within the rules of hand and waist)
So, backhand serves really have lots of problems with regulations. We all have seen pros have accidentally violated the hand/waist rules before :) One must be careful with doing backhand serves.

[Brave_Turtle]

I find back hand serve fast and harder to receive than forehand. It can surprise your oponent.

[Lao Liu]

There is an advantage using backhand serve in doubles. If you measure the distance between the position you hit the shuttle and the net in bachand and forehand serves, you can draw your own conclusion on what I am talking about ;) .

[taneepak]

There is an advantage using backhand serve in doubles. If you measure the distance between the position you hit the shuttle and the net in bachand and forehand serves, you can draw your own conclusion on what I am talking about ;) .

Exactly, the key here is the shorter time the receiver has to reach a backhand serve. You can visualize this better if you were to perform 2 backhand services, one from the front service line and the other from 2 feet behind the front service line. The longer serve will get you into more strife. Therefore a backhand serve is at least a good 6" shorter in distance than a forehand serve, both serving from the front service line.

[Ay33]

I use the backhand serve most of the time. It has proven consistency over the years that i've played and I find it easier to get the shuttle tight to the tape. It feels kind of awkward using the forehand, and also it's hard to get leverage, therefore i make myself prone to being smashed at.

[speedy shuttle]

In doubles I use almost strictly backhand, I feel that I keep the bird lower over the net and it is less likely to be drivin hard back at me or my partner. I use almost strictly a forehand serve in singles because it is much easier to get it nice and deep the backcourt with a forehand, also it is easier to hit a little slice serve to fool my opp once in a while:D

[Framerate]

Singles is forehand, end of story. Simply because I can't replicate the height of the singles deep serve with a backhand serve.

Well, I am confused!

More and more top players use short backhand serves all the time, like in the olympics. In singles!!

I´ve always thought that a long high forehand serve was the best serve in singles, but obviously the finalists in the olympics thinks otherwise?

Explain please! :crying:

[Neil Nicholls]

depends on the standard of the players.

A low serve in singles is more aggressive. You try to make you opponent play his first shot from below net height. Hopefully to make him lift it. The person serving short has to be quick enough to get to tight net replies, or fast pushes to the rear-court. You'll notice that the ladies don't use the low serve as much as the men in singles.

A high serve is more neutral, if you get it deep enough. You don't have to defend so close to the net, but you have to worry about smashes, drops, and attacking clears.
If it is not deep enough, you are immediately on the defensive.

[dlp]

In most instances I would say follow what top pros do in terms of technique / tactics. However in the case of the low serve for singles it does not follow that just because it is used by the top players it should be used by county/club players.

Few club singles players have a genuinely dangerous attack, either in terms of power/accuracy or deception if the high serve is falling on the back line. What is more few of these players will be able to sustain a good level of return from this position for three ends of singles.

In modern top level mens singles however most players will happily jump smash/drop/clear from the high serve for three ends gaining many quick points and few errors, this was not true 15 years ago and that is why you see so many players serving low now, I think the move to the low serve was hastened by the season in which all games were played to 7 points.

Further considerations for pros may be the drift, something few club players have to contend with, clearly a high serve is more vulnerable to drift.

So I would suggest you have both serves in your game, choosing which suits you/your opponent best.

[Neil Nicholls]

Thanks, dlp
that's pretty much what I meant by "depends on the standard of the players" but I couldn't think how to say it.

I hadn't considered 5x7 or the effect of drift though.

[Framerate]

Thanks for your answers. I´ve tried short backhand serve myself, in singles, but I often find it difficult to reach a high and long return from the opponent. Perhaps the position should be slightly further back when serving backhand in singles as compared to backhand in doubles?

And ofcourse the serve has to be perfect, to avoid a quick attack.

Just as you say, I can clearly se that the short backhand serve actually IS aggressive in singles and not the easy way out...

[Neil Nicholls]

oh yes, definately, stand a bit further back for the singles low serve than the doubles low serve.
I stand in about the same area as for my mixed serve. About 3 feet back.
Not like top players mixed serve which is still quite close to the service line.
I can't cover the back if I start out that far forward.

the singles low serve doesn't have to be as tight as the doubles low serve.
If the receiver edges forward to try to kill it, then you do a flick serve instead of a low serve.
If the receiver is too fast for you, then go back to the high serve.

[Framerate]

It looks so easy on TV! I´ve recorded the goldmatch and I studied it yesterday. The serves looks so easy, not difficult to attack. But not even once any of the players did an attack on the serve nor did they do any long serve.

As always... the better the player the easier it looks! My games must look very complicated. :D

I love badminton! :)

[SmashMaster]

well i almost always serve backhand just because it is as powerful if not more than my forehand the reason being cause i can hug the tape and get it in or lift it just so it lands on the back line i hardly serve forehand in a game just simply because i don't like to but if im just rallying with somebody then i do it.

[matt!]

hi! i find the backhand the better serve because, its more controlled and harder for your opponent to return! B)

[holyspacemonkey]

i generally use backhand in doubles and forehand in singles because in doubles you tend to do short serves and singles, the opposite and i an get more power on my forehand and more control on backhand

[quik_silver]

For singles I always use forehead becuase sometimes I can fool some less skilled players. They sometimes can't tell are you going to serve short or long. For doubles, I always use backhead becuase your partner can sometimes get your mistakes so it's like an insurance.