Hi there! Although I've been playing badminton for quite some time now, its only recently that I started watching matches in earnest. I have to say that I'm really hooked on to it now. I am constantly amazed by the style, techniques and tenacity of different players and it really really humbles me as a player! Anyways, I haven't really formed a favorite player in my head as yet. Probably that's why I enjoy the game more since I can appreciate the game of the both the sides (Although I must admit that I tend to root for LCW when he's against LD and I don't know why!) One player who I really love watching though, is Lee Hyun Il from Korea. I only saw him playing in the recently concluded All England Open and the Swiss Open. He's probably the most elegant player I've ever seen in my life. The guy practically glides through the court and his motions are absolutely fluidic. He obviously doesn't have the power of someone like LD or even the speed of LCW but somehow I find his game beautiful. Could you guys name a couple more such players from the past who were equally elegant, if not more! Since I don't know any player from the past, I've a clean slate and would love to see and learn how these players do it so seemingly effortlessly!
LD actually has powerful footwork. His strong legs allow him to stand more at the rear court, because he's fast enough to reach the net very quickly.
Agree that Lin Dan's footwork is often overlooked b/c of his myriad other talents. He covers a lot of ground and makes it look easy.Taufik, like Bao Chun Lai, is another whose mvt make it look as though his side of the court is smaller than usual.
With regards to Taufik, I don't really think that his footwork is as efficient as say LD's... its just that he has this crazy backhand ability that he can play the bird almost at any position and it still looks controlled. More like a magician conjuring up new tricks every now and again!!
you're not the only person who thinks that http://www.badmintoncentral.com/forums/showthread.php/29825-Lee-Hyun-Il?p=1859200#post1859200
LD has very fast and powerful footwork, but it is not so aesthetically pleasing - his legs dont sit quite right and sometimes his forward movemnet can be a bit awkward. LDs beauty is his agility, he has incredible muscular ability. LHI is indeed a beautiful player, Chen Hong also had very good footwork but because he was a bit of a smasher his overall play did not have the beauty of LHI. If you watch the OG of Chen Hong vs Shon seung mo with good sound quality you can hear SSM's footwork bounding around the court and when CH moves there is no sound. Shon Wan Ho is influenced a lot by LHI, they have very similar footwork. Yang Yang had very good footwork as did Peter Rasmussen and Sun Jun.
I always wonder how it looks when I move around the court. I'd be sooo happy if it would be even remotely close to LHI