• The Art of Badminton Deception - Hold and Hit

    Performing a well executed deception can be used both as a useful strategy and part of your several "shots bank" that can give you the winning edge while playing. As valid as executing other shots such as a smash or drops, it also makes how we see badminton beautifully played since it a technical skills that is an art by itself.

    In regards with the way we play badminton now, which emphasize on speed and power, there are still place for deception since the millisecond of breathing space produced while executing it can be part of the preparation as a winner and theoretically it should be part of the coaching module. So can deception be coached?

    The answer is yes but its not easy. Before coaching a player to execute the correct technique about deception, that player must understand first on how to execute all the full range of normal shots using the correct technique. The other important ingredient to successfully execute a deception is to have a fair degree of forearm and wrist strength since they are used ultimately to energize for the late arrival of the racket head to the shuttle upon hitting it. Your eyes also needs to be very sharp and always alert so that you can have a clear vision and awareness on how you move your racket in refer to where is your opponent positioned in order to properly coordinate the next hit in ensuring the deception is a well executed one.

    As long as badminton has exist, the types of deception also has evolved since it is part of the badminton evolution. Therefore, there are a lot of deceptions available now and only "your fantasy" can be the limit to what available types of deception that can possibly exist. Personally, i have a lot of type of deception under my belt and frankly speaking, I've used them quite often and it helps me a lot as part of my winning edge in numbers of tournament. I've coached them also to my students as part of the advance modul in the coaching program and i can see its psychological advantage and positive breakthrough on how they are playing and i want to share this knowledge to you.

    Teaching deception theoretically using words and sentences is not easy since, it is the applied technical part that will give the full effect on how the correct technique should be executed. Therefore, by having the correct knowledge, continously practice on perfecting the technique so that it can eventually be executed correctly. Learning deception is one thing but perfecting it require full dedication and concentration because it is an art that you cannot master overnight.

    Deception 1 - Hold and Hit

    1. Intro

    Arguably among the most common deception used, the hold and hit type deception can be a lethal maneuver by itself if executed well. The "hit" portion can either end as a flick or net (if you're retrieving the shuttlecock as a net play) or a drive or drop (if you're retrieving the shuttlecock as a drive shot) depends on where your opponents reacts and moves. Its the combination of both "hold", that makes your opponent mind thinks it is going to be hit at that particular shot hence reacts to it and the "hit" portion where the direction of the shuttlecock upon hitting it will go to the opposite direction that act as a deceptive moves that eventually leaves your opponent stranded. One recent maneuver was performed by Peter Gade yesterday against a Japanese player, Yamada in this year WC.

    2. Type

    The "hold" and "hit" deception has two type of maneuver, the back swing follow through and no back swing follow through. These two different type exist because it is referring to the different technique applied in its "hold" component. This thread will only concentrate on teaching the "back swing follow through" "hold" and "hit" type of deception since this is the most difficult and among the most deceptive shot available.

    3. "Hold" and " Hit" - The back swing follow through

    3.1 Components

    The differences between the back swing follow through and no back swing follow through is at its "hold" component since it requires for the player to extend the forearm as like retrieving the shots but then, there are no immediate "contact/hit" perform yet. This is because the player needs to do a reverse movements or back swing of his forearm as to allow a synchronize movements backwards of the racket head in refer to the shuttlecock to create a time frame delay before hitting the shuttlecock at the last possible moments. The no back swing follow through will have minimal or no back swing movement and the time frame delay will be more shorter.

    3.2 Technique

    This deception has 4 phase which include preparation, the hold phase - retrieving, the hold phase - back swing follow through and finally the hit phase. Below is the diagram of all the phases and the explanation on what are techniques to executed them.



    a. Preparation

    - Always hold the racket head level high. By doing this, you can address/retrieve the shuttlecock earlier and to make enough room for your forearm to extend.

    b. Hold - Retrieving

    - Extend your forearm as like your going to address the shuttlecock to hit it but don't hit it yet. The earlier you address is better since it will make more room for you to perform a back swing later.

    * As mention earlier, it is important also at this point to be clearly aware where is your opponent positioned.

    c. Hold - back swing follow through

    * This is the most tricky part as you need to have a good coordination to synchronize the forearm back swing movement with the shuttlecock travel trajectory together with the split second awareness where is your opponents position and his movements.

    - Do a reverse movement of your forearm/a back swing of your racket and synchronize its movement together with the speed and direction of the shuttlecock . This back swing action together with the shuttlecock movement and the wait to hit the shuttlecock until the last moment will in fact create the delay.
    - At the same time, coordinate this movement together with a clear awareness on where is your opponent moves.
    - The deceptive moves depends hugely on the amount of delay performed. The more room in performing a back swing will results in a more longer delay to hit the shuttle thus making your opponents clueless to where your going to hit it and at the same time will give you enough time to observe his reaction towards how you address the shuttlecock. This is why you need to address the shuttlecock earlier.

    d. The Hit

    - Once your opponent has react on how you address the shuttlecock and at the same time, you are also clearly aware where is your opponent moves, then at this last moment, you hit the shuttlecock to any opposite direction leaving your opponent possibly stranded.

    Hopes this is useful and may the deception force be with you.
    This article was originally published in forum thread: The Art of Badminton Deception - Hold and Hit started by shooting stroke View original post
    Comments 30 Comments
    1. tckang's Avatar
      tckang -
      Nice and detailed explanation you have got there above, shooting stroke. Keep it up!
      The problem i observe in Malaysian social badminton circles is, most beginners have not even master the basics (example EVEN proper grips and footwork!) and yet they are already over enthusiastic to execute all the fancy trick shots
    1. shooting stroke's Avatar
      shooting stroke -
      Quote Originally Posted by tckang View Post
      Nice and detailed explanation you have got there above, shooting stroke. Keep it up!
      The problem i observe in Malaysian social badminton circles is, most beginners have not even master the basics (example EVEN proper grips and footwork!) and yet they are already over enthusiastic to execute all the fancy trick shots
      Can't agree more. The basic tools to perfectly master any deception is to perfectly master the basic shots first.
    1. shooting stroke's Avatar
      shooting stroke -
      I'm working to add the 2nd type of deception that is the double motion deception (both long swing and short swing type ) later for further knowledge sharing.
    1. kohminkiat's Avatar
      kohminkiat -
      Quote Originally Posted by tckang View Post
      Nice and detailed explanation you have got there above, shooting stroke. Keep it up!
      The problem i observe in Malaysian social badminton circles is, most beginners have not even master the basics (example EVEN proper grips and footwork!) and yet they are already over enthusiastic to execute all the fancy trick shots
      You r right tckang. Most players don't even master the basics and yet they r playing all those fancy shots. With the 21-points scoring format, if these fancy trick shots not executing well, it will lose points, and this will lead to us losing our confidence as well (which many social players don't realize). I am a firm believer in playing the basics 1st b4 we go on to execute fancy/funny shots. Many players just stick to the basics and can win games consistently already. Thx shooting stroke for the detailed sharing on the hold and flick techniq.
    1. visor's Avatar
      visor -
      3 things need to be added:

      1. In order for deception to work, your fake action (whether single or double motion) has to be telegraphed very obviously for your opponent to see. Not only that, he also has to react to it. If he sees the fake action, and yet not react to it, then your deception will has less impact.

      2. As you mentioned, this is a high level skill that is added to a solid foundation. In most games I've seen (club or professional), you can only get 2-3 points using deception. Why? Because a worthy opponent will quickly adapt and avoid being deceived by simply not reacting until they've seen the bird leave your racket.

      3. Deception will by its very nature cause you to lose some precious time to execute. The contact point will be lower, leading to a less aggressive shot, so it'll only work well for net shots or lifts or clears. Deception will only work well if your opponent has hit a bad shot or you have reached a shot early enough so that you have the time to think and execute it.
    1. pBmMalaysia's Avatar
      pBmMalaysia -
      the diagram is easy to understand

      very well drawn

      remember practice makes perfect
    1. London_Player's Avatar
      London_Player -
      Any video clips would be better, if available.
    1. shooting stroke's Avatar
      shooting stroke -
      Quote Originally Posted by London_Player View Post
      Any video clips would be better, if available.
      This a good example of a hold and hit video. Observe closely that:




      - The racket level is high so he can address the shuttlecock earlier to allow him to make
      enough room to make the back swing / reverse movement of his forearm
      - The hold component that is the back swing follow through is done by
      synchronizing the racket head movement with the direction of the shuttlecock trajectory
      - The hit component end as a deceptive forehand cross court net.
    1. X3RXUS's Avatar
      X3RXUS -
      I love these deception techniques and they made you less predictable.
    1. SibugiChai's Avatar
      SibugiChai -
      good write up... Lot of people complain about players yet to master the basic trying to do deception.

      IMHO, no harm for players to try a few deception along the course of the game but if they do it 9 outta 10 times then it too much.

      I personally will try out deception shots with weaker players to polish the skills before using it in real tourny!
    1. SystemicAnomaly's Avatar
      SystemicAnomaly -
      Quote Originally Posted by shooting stroke View Post
      This a good example of a hold and hit video. Observe closely that:




      - The racket level is high so he can address the shuttlecock earlier to allow him to make
      enough room to make the back swing / reverse movement of his forearm
      - The hold component that is the back swing follow through is done by
      synchronizing the racket head movement with the direction of the shuttlecock trajectory
      - The hit component end as a deceptive forehand cross court net.
      This video of Lee Jae Bok is more than just a simple hold and hit. He is actually executing a double deception in this demonstration. He moves in and holds as if he is going to execute a net drop. After a brief hold, he then drops the racket as if he is going to clear (lift or flick) the shuttle deep. Shortly after the racket drop, he then drops his hand (and the handle of his racket) to change the orientation of the racket face in order to hit a net shot cross-court instead.
    1. lordisis's Avatar
      lordisis -
      Quote Originally Posted by tckang View Post
      Nice and detailed explanation you have got there above, shooting stroke. Keep it up!
      The problem i observe in Malaysian social badminton circles is, most beginners have not even master the basics (example EVEN proper grips and footwork!) and yet they are already over enthusiastic to execute all the fancy trick shots
      very true, mayb its the excitement and thrills from executing trick shots thats causing a lot of players frm developing basic strokes and footwork.
    1. raymond's Avatar
      raymond -
      Quote Originally Posted by visor View Post
      3 things need to be added:

      2. As you mentioned, this is a high level skill that is added to a solid foundation. In most games I've seen (club or professional), you can only get 2-3 points using deception. Why? Because a worthy opponent will quickly adapt and avoid being deceived by simply not reacting until they've seen the bird leave your racket.
      This means not only does deception have a potential to score directly, it also has the potential to take away your opponent's ability to anticipate your returns, thus slowing him down.
    1. Onix08's Avatar
      Onix08 -
      A detailed explanation just like this one explains what kind of attack you can implement in playing badminton!
    1. Onix08's Avatar
      Onix08 -
      Quote Originally Posted by raymond View Post
      This means not only does deception have a potential to score directly, it also has the potential to take away your opponent's ability to anticipate your returns, thus slowing him down.
      A detailed explanation just like this one explains what kind of attack you can implement in playing badminton!
    1. vin219's Avatar
      vin219 -
      Quote Originally Posted by visor View Post
      3 things need to be added:

      1. In order for deception to work, your fake action (whether single or double motion) has to be telegraphed very obviously for your opponent to see. Not only that, he also has to react to it. If he sees the fake action, and yet not react to it, then your deception will has less impact.

      2. As you mentioned, this is a high level skill that is added to a solid foundation. In most games I've seen (club or professional), you can only get 2-3 points using deception. Why? Because a worthy opponent will quickly adapt and avoid being deceived by simply not reacting until they've seen the bird leave your racket.

      3. Deception will by its very nature cause you to lose some precious time to execute. The contact point will be lower, leading to a less aggressive shot, so it'll only work well for net shots or lifts or clears. Deception will only work well if your opponent has hit a bad shot or you have reached a shot early enough so that you have the time to think and execute it.
      visor is right, it wont work very well against d pro players, tats why u wont c much professional players using deception shots all d time during tournament.. u might as well get in early to tk d shot as u hv much more option to play it!
    1. positivity's Avatar
      positivity -
      Nice tutorial btw..
    1. NeverWalkAlone's Avatar
      NeverWalkAlone -
      Quote Originally Posted by vin219 View Post
      visor is right, it wont work very well against d pro players, tats why u wont c much professional players using deception shots all d time during tournament.. u might as well get in early to tk d shot as u hv much more option to play it!
      i'd have to disagree. deceptions are always used in the top tier of badminton, especially by lin dan. i have been studying his videos lately and i have come to appreciate how amazing he is, btw. it's always used in the doubles too. this is due to the high speed reactions required in doubles. sudden "hold and hit" actions will help them to win points, when least expected.
    1. visor's Avatar
      visor -
      Quote Originally Posted by NeverWalkAlone View Post
      i'd have to disagree. deceptions are always used in the top tier of badminton, especially by lin dan. i have been studying his videos lately and i have come to appreciate how amazing he is, btw. it's always used in the doubles too. this is due to the high speed reactions required in doubles. sudden "hold and hit" actions will help them to win points, when least expected.
      you can't use lin dan as an example... he's not human!

      in doubles, don't forget there's 2 players covering their side of the court, so again, unless your opponent hits a loose shot that you can get to early enough, you can't really score... unless they make an error or you can get an outright kill
    1. feafea's Avatar
      feafea -
      How do you practice this technique? Is it possible to practice this technique alone? How much of a wrist motion is involved? Are there any useful drills?