I need advice to anyone who has experienced my problem. I am a fairly good badminton player for a high school team but i feel like i am being held back from what i should be playing. My coach never puts me in games even though at our challenge matches, i beat the #1 and #2 players. I tried talking to him but he says he'll fix it and he ends up putting me into one JV game and then forgetting about me. I am sick of seeing crappier players play higher ranks than me. Should i confront my coach and jeopardize even being on the team or should i just be passive and hope that good things come to those who wait?

How about...............if the #1 and #2 player should have an "Accident" ****hint hint nudge nudge**** and not be able to play! LOL JOkeeeee! Don't take the above advice.

Try to screw his happiness, if u are not bothered much abt badminton!

But then i hate to see coaches doing such kind of politics! what i would like to ask is, Do u on a consistent basis beat the #1&2 guys! whenever u step in with those guys onto a court,u should beat them! Beating them on one day means nothing!

I am sure results will earn u into the team! How long can he stop u from making to the team if u are simply superlative than others!

Yup, consistency counts and do it by a bigger margin each time.

The key here is to try to get as many positive results as you can by being very polite and diplomatic. I would go up to the coach after a practice, when no one else is around (remember, you do not want to do anything that he might feel embarasses him in front of others) and politely say the following: "Coach, as you know, I've been working really hard at my game for the team and I've been consistently beating our #1 and #2 seeded players, but you've been putting me in the JV matches. I don't understand that - could you please explain to me why I'm not one of our top seeded varsity players?" If you get some sort of runaround, emphasize to the coach how hard you have been working on your game and how much the team means to you and how you are sure that your success at the challenge matches will result in success for your team in competition against other teams. If you can't get a real answer, then ask him if he will at least think about it and give you an answer at the next practice. Talk to him again the following day after practice and again, politely ask him if he will have you play as the #1 or #2 player at your next tournament. If he still says no, then you need to consider the entire situation.

Setting aside some unlikely fact scenarios, such as bribery or strategy in an unusual, isolated situation, there are only three conceivable reasons why a coach would consistently refuse to allow a player who was the strongest in practice play in competitions: 1) the coach is biased and is playing favorites, even if it is simply to reward an older player who has been on the team a long time; 2) the player in question has skills but a bad attitude, isn't a team player, shows up late to practices and games, etc...; or 3) the player who is better in practice does not do well in real competitions or won't match up as well against particular opponents (e.g. in the recent Olympics, the U.S. women's ski team had a skiier who is very fast in practice and had no trouble beating most or all of the other women in the Olympic tryouts, but had a history of choking and falling in practically every major international race she had entered. Sure enough, she fell again in every damn race in the Olympics and should never have been on the team). You will have to be really honest with yourself and if #2 or #3 applies to you, ask the coach if that is a factor and ask how you can overcome those legitimate obstacles.

If the coach is just biased, you can try saying something like the following to him (but stay calm and polite, no matter what happens): "Coach, I've worked really hard for this team and tried to be fair with you and all of my teammates - can you be fair with me? I tried to be reasonable by talking with you about this first, rather than just bringing this to the attention of the athletic director or the principal. Will you please let me play in a top varsity spot - I've earned it." If you still get no result, say "What else can I do other than take this matter to the athletic director (or principal)? What will you say other than that you're playing favorites?" If you still get no results, talk with your parents about this situation and write a letter to the school's athletic director or principal, if there isn't an AD at your school. Politely and accurately state all of the details of the situation and ask to schedule a meeting with your parents, the director and the coach to discuss this issue. At that meeting, make sure you and your parents come across as much more civil and reasonable than the coach.

Good luck. I sympathize with you. I had a real insecure, weenie of a coach on my cross country team when I was younger and when I made a suggestion about one type of practice (a suggestion all of my teammates thought was a good idea, but which I did not express in the most tactful fashion), it offended him and we had a bad relationship for the rest of my time on the team, resulting in him putting in a slower runner instead of me in one regional tournament.

anonymous: i see your situation often from the coach's perspective. a few years ago, i had a similar situation with a player who, in my estimation was as good or even better than my top singles player. the strokes were cleaner, the movement was better and during practices he would often beat the top singles player.

then the league plays come, he never got past 10 points in most games against opponents, who in my evaluation weaker than him. he had some mental block - he chokes. he did not the a mental toughness against new opponents, just a mental toughness playing against his teammates (or familiarity).

the other singles player on the other hand, during critical matches, he gets even cooler, grits down and plays like there is no tomorrow. his shots get tighter, he gets faster. he loves playing sudden death, tiebreaks and he usually wins, just out of determination. that's why he took the singles title.

in all the practices i tried to work on the player to get him to mentally toughen himself. but in real life, he is the same. something you will understand later, "you play the way you are in real life".

so, are you the former or the latter... have a heart to heart talk with the coach, he will tell you why if there is a legitimate reason for not starting you.

great well-crafted feedback!

I like Brett's 1st paragraph. You give the message you think you are better but also framing the point in a way that makes you come across as looking for advice for improvement.

For the point of choking, that's a mental weakness. There may be other technical defects in skills that your team players cannot exploit but some other players can quite easily.

For myself, my reaction is attempt to make the case as watertight as possible. That might mean looking inwards, being open about one's own weaknesses (be it knowledge, skill, tactics) and working to improve. i.e. thus weakening the coach's arguments.

A healthy dose of lateral thinking helps to provide solutions. If you are in high school, that's quite easy. Just find a club to play with, play against a variety of people, try and think why you lost and ask the better ones for advice. Even just playing one extra sesiona week with different players can make a big difference.

If the coach has a different opinion to you into what's important, don't argue. It won't make a difference. Those reasons are important to him. You have to make yourself flexible enough to adapt. Just like working in a job, if you don't fit the expections (even though you work hard), your contract will be not be renewed. You might be working hard at things not important to the whole team.

I think any reasonable coach would be amenable to giving a person a trial, though.

Thanks. I try to mix a bit more tact in with my opinions as I grow older. Sometimes it helps, even if it makes life less interesting. ;)

That's true! And another factor comes in for consideration is sportsmanship. Sportsmanship behavior counts when it comes to official matches. You might have displayed some undesirable behaviors that your coach did not like during matches.