Whilst re-reading a Chinese novel "Sheng Diao Xia Lui" of my favourite author Jin Yong, I came across a part which I think makes a great analogy on how badminton players choose their rackets as they grow in skills and experiences, and I like to share with the BC members. (You have to excuse my poor translation though, and those members of Chinese background and have read this popular novel would probably appreciate it better)

It is the part when the main character "Yang Gua" chanced upon the grave of a great swordmaster and fond 4 of the swards that the swardmaster used with some explanation notes describing the phases that the swordmaster went through. It basically says:
(1) Phase 1: when the swordmaster reached 18 years old, he was using a rare and special sword which is valuable and has extremely sharp blade. By having the advantage of the sword, he was invincible and became famous.
(2) Phase 2: between 18years old and 30 years old, as the swordmaster grew more mature and more skillfull, he changed his sword for a light sword. At this time, he emphasised on SPEED and SKILL. He continues to dominate the martial art world.
(3) Phase 3: between 30 and 40 years old. He changed again and this time his sword is blunt and heavy because his skill and speed has evolved to a stage that weight and sharpness of the sword is of no issue to him. He has the POWER.
(4) Phase 4: beyond 40 years old until he died. He can hardly found a worthy opponent, the type of sword to him is no longer a factor to consider for he has reached the peak of sword skill. His sward at this stage of his life is just a simple wooden sword, which in his hand turned into a formiddable weapon better than any other swords.

Now think about a badminton player:
(1) Phase 1: when one started playing one would be attracted to the branded and the top range racket. They dream to have the latest top-end racket thinking it would make them a better player.
(2) Phase 2: when the player has their basic skill right, they would prefer rackets that are light (balanced/head-light rackets).
(3) Phase 3: up to a stage when the player is more competent on their skill, they seek power. This is when head-heavy racket would be their choice - it gives them the extra power.
(4) Phase 4: when they are at the pinnacle (top professional players), the racket is no longer the issue. They can adopt to any rackets easily. They can also pick up any range of racket and still demostrate their level of skill and power.

Pretty interesting huh?:D ;)

haha, not bad at all.
so i suspect lin dan is near phase 5 then, when he stops using a racquet and starts returning shuttles with his bare hands ... as someone once said, and i think it someone from forza, the racquet should be a natural extension of the arm, in this case, the arm has evolved into a racquet!

what bout blowing the shuttles

but in those novel u can train up your "Force Field"
the bird will just rebound off an invisible wall above the net

It is the part when the main character "Yang Gua" chanced upon the grave of a great swordmaster and fond 4 of the swards that the swardmaster used with some explanation notes describing the phases that the swordmaster went through.

Now think about a badminton player:
(1) Phase 1: when one started playing one would be attracted to the branded and the top range racket. They dream to have the latest top-end racket thinking it would make them a better player.
(2) Phase 2: when the player has their basic skill right, they would prefer rackets that are light (balanced/head-light rackets).
(3) Phase 3: up to a stage when the player is more competent on their skill, they seek power. This is when head-heavy racket would be their choice - it gives them the extra power.
(4) Phase 4: when they are at the pinnacle (top professional players), the racket is no longer the issue. They can adopt to any rackets easily. They can also pick up any range of racket and still demostrate their level of skill and power.

Pretty interesting huh?:D ;)

His name is Yang Guo. ;)

Talking about the 4 phases, I have a bit different understanding:

1. Agree.

2. Rather than prefer "light", I would state "fit for their need/style", be it heavy or light.

3. Rather than "heavy", I would state "with better potential". Usually in badminton racket that refers to stiffness, rather than overall weight.

4. The kongfu master reached to a level way beyond the society, which hardly the case for badminton elites. Instead of any type, I would add a bit limitation, as "reasonable range". With today's speed and power, the players still need a racket fits their style to reach the peak performance. Of course, that's regardless the brand or whether the model is the newest or not. ;)

That's pretty good. Like Yang Guo turned to a wooden sword, how about the badminton pros reverting to wooden rackets!:D Then we'll see how much they've mastered their craft. :)

don't remeber he ever switched to the wooden swd
he was using the dull metal swd for the most part at the
ending phase

I agree with the analogy. If I were to start my journey of badminton from the beginning again, I would have taken more time with each racket I had before buying another racket, because I think the analogy really make sense. I didn't master using a racket before moving on to another racket, so I was making pointless upgrades.

I'll explain a bit:

In the analogy, phase 1 is using the weapon that is the most powerful. In badminton, I'd assume a even/head-heavy racket to get the most out of smashes. I started with an aluminum racket, which really was too heavy for me at the time, so it wasn't my best option. But it was okay for smashing, but I ended up hitting the frame a lot.

Phase 2 is speed and skill, which corresponds to maximizing reflexes and control through a light racket to be able to do quick shots like net play and drives. I did actually move to a head-light racket, a Ti 7, but I shouldn't have changed racket yet. I haven't actually fully developed my basic strokes though. So you can consider me being in phase 1, but using the wrong racket.

Phase 3 is moving to more heavy rackets when you are able to move a heavy racket quickly, but can benefit from power of heavy racket. I eventually got bored of using a head light racket because I wanted more power in backhand shots. At this point, I can do all shots, but I wasn't satisfied with the power, so I got the MP77. Which was really powerful.

In less than 4 months, I clashed and broke the MP77. Back to Ti 7. But I noticed I can hit hard with Ti 7, although it is much harder because the stroke has to be very "clean". Whereas the MP77 was easy to hit hard with, the Ti 7 required extra care to make sure the racket contacts the shuttle precisely, and not off center. But I could really powerful drives too, so it was great. But eventually clashed the Ti 7 in about 2 months, so needed another racket. At this point I demoed some Black Knight rackets, and found one that I can use, that was not too expensive. It is very comfortable to use, and I'm still using it today, 1.5 years after buying it. However, I felt it is time to move on, that I need a head-heavy racket to train with to build up my forearm muscle a bit, so I bought an AT500 few months ago. It's like making the move from phase 2 to phase 3. But then I play less and less these presently, so I haven't had time to get used to the AT500, and when I play games, I revert back to the BK racket.

I suspect I would benefit taking a step back, and getting a really light racket. My BK racket is slightly head-heavy, though it's fairly easy to move. In terms of skill, I think I should consider being in phase 1 and not ready to move to phase 2. If only I had more time to train and play. I used to play twice a week, but now I can only afford the time to play once a week, and sometimes not at all. To move from my BK racket to the AT500 is kind of like a jump from phase 1 to 3; the AT500 will bring improvements if I get used to head-heavyiness, but I'm not going to have the speed like I would if I was to use a head-light racket. And speed is more of a concern than power for me. I could consider AT500 as my phase 1 racket .. maybe I should master that and then move to a head light racket.

Why not invite Jin Yong to BF for further commentary :D :D :D?

Why not invite Jin Yong to BF for further commentary :D :D :D?

i'd rather have him better editing his novel and come out earlier :P

nice analogy :D

4th stage is really appealing, it is when he can use anything and still be the best(that is, if he still uses the big sword, he will just be better, read the last battle against the monogolian monk, he regreted not bringing his big sword, or else he would have won much easier)

good job, when will you bring us the analogy of using dual wielding two weapon(from guo jing)? :D

Actually, Yang Guo didn't even need to use a weapon. His "shao mei ahn hwun tsang" (bad ping ying) was better than any sword. :D

Actually, Yang Guo didn't even need to use a weapon. His "shao mei ahn hwun tsang" (bad ping ying) was better than any sword. :D

what is that? :P

what is that? :P

You don't know what that is? It's the Kung-Fu technique he invented over the 10 years, while mourning over the love of his life.

You don't know what that is? It's the Kung-Fu technique he invented over the 10 years, while mourning over the love of his life.
i don't know what pinyin is that :P

16years... to be exact :D

don't remeber he ever switched to the wooden swd
he was using the dull metal swd for the most part at the
ending phase

He actually did. When Yang Guo completed his few years of meditation and training near the sea and with the "Diao" (giant bird), he actually left the graveside with the wooden sword. Many years later when he re-appeared in the martial art world, he somehow switched to the dull metal sword.

Remember, at that stage Yang Guo has gone through a lot and he has matured. But he is still "unknown" to the martial art world. If he used a wooden sword against any opponent, it could be regarded as utmost unrespectful and an insult to the opponent, which was then not acceptable.

It is probably the same today. Imagine when Lin Dan is playing at the first and second round of any tournament, when he faces opponents that he (and we) know he would win easily, he would still use his normal racket (MP99??) instead of pick up a lesser racket (even if he could). This would be out of respect of the opponent and gamemanship. (of course beside sponsorship issue!!).

within a year after i started badminton i have like 11 rackets! headlight, headheavy, 2u, 3u, 4u, 5u etc. now i have 4. 2 ti10 and 2 victor rackets(zhaojianhua3000).

not that i am so good that rackets doesnt matter, just those to weaker opponents, these rackets are more than enough, to the stronger ones, any rackets i changed to i will still lose to them:mad:

i just prefer to 'die' with a 'sword' i like.:p

actually, this concept can apply to everything really

like the old chinese saying "a skillful person aren't picky with equipment"

:p

yes, a skillful player will never blame his racquet, as we all know, it's always the line judge's fault!

yes, a skillful player will never blame his racquet, as we all know, it's always the line judge's fault!

Dang straight! :p ;)

I like this analogy...

Lin Dan came out with MP99 which was balanced and relied on skill and his OWN speed to win.

Now he's using AT700 and trying to fix his grip posiiton for more power.

When he comes out one day with a old low end model such as MP28, we'll all know why ;)

When he comes out one day with a old low end model such as MP28, we'll all know why ;)

No way this could be true. Even if LD reaches that skill lvl, Yonex will NEVER allow him to give up the chance to promote their higher end product. :rolleyes:

I like this analogy...

Lin Dan came out with MP99 which was balanced and relied on skill and his OWN speed to win.

Now he's using AT700 and trying to fix his grip posiiton for more power.

When he comes out one day with a old low end model such as MP28, we'll all know why ;)


In Asia most of the top badminton countries have contractual agreements with sponsors. For international competitions Yonex has tied up almost all the top Asian countries. Sure it costs Yonex an arm and a leg but then in return Yonex is compensated very well in free advertising. As an example this very forum has done Yonex an enormous amount of good-Yonex couldn't have done it better.

No way this could be true. Even if LD reaches that skill lvl, Yonex will NEVER allow him to give up the chance to promote their higher end product. :rolleyes:

No, but let's just say... his racquet bag got stolen and everyone wants to see SUPER-DAN foreit and not lend him racquets. A little kid gives Dan his MP28. OHHH YEAH BABY! ANYTHING WILL DO!

No in all seriously, I doubt he ever would come out with a MP28 or anything similar, but it is quite possible that he could.

No, but let's just say... his racquet bag got stolen and everyone wants to see SUPER-DAN foreit and not lend him racquets. A little kid gives Dan his MP28. OHHH YEAH BABY! ANYTHING WILL DO!

Would that kid be our resident Lin Dan expert: Baderz_Jas?