I can't seem to be able to hit overhead shots, including smashes. I used to be able to with no problems. This problem started on April 5th (yes I remembered the exact date). Now I can't even hit them; I keep missing. People tell me I keep missing the birdie by like an inch from the side of the racquet. And I am not a beginner, I used to be in a club and took lessons every week. I can't hit it whether I'm swinging slowly or hard. I can't even hit it when I'm standing still. Sometimes I swing too early, sometimes too late. There is nothing wrong with my eyes, grip, positioning or whatever. I don't even know why this problem suddenly started. The day before I could hit normally. I get people to keep serving high to me to practice, but I still miss it. It's VERY frustrating when I see everyone able to hit overhead except for me especially when I know I could do it but somehow can't I ask people for help, but their advice isn't helping. I don't know what to do.
Technique does not change overnight. It sounds like a temporary patch of bad play has become entrenched by your frustration and your anxiety that it might continue. Relax. It will come back; unless you have suffered a physical or mental injury in April, there's no chance that your technique has disappeared. Probably you are just worrying about it too much -- that will upset your timing. Don't try to hit the shuttle too hard. Don't even worry about clearing a full length. Slow down your swing and relax. It will come back.
This is a strange one Sorry to ask but have you had any history of spinal injury in you life? Because something like this happen to me. I use to do another sport(KIckboxing) where I damaged cartleage in my left knee cap. It recovered in 6 months..........all seemed well and 3 years later i got a medical performed for a job and the doctor tried to test my legs with that little hammer than makes your leg kick when he hits certain spots on the knee cap. My right leg was fine..........my left leg gave no reaction during the test, this was frustrating the doctor and he tried on various spots to get a reaction over 15mins, he even asked me if i was deliberately "not moving my leg on purpose?" and i said no. He looked in amazment and said...........'This only happens with people who have suffered spinal injury' I have hurt my back twice but not that bad i think. Then he said ' In theory you should be unable to walk' After being booked in for more tests..................Basically I have 30% less coordination than my left leg due to a back injury in the past but i don't walk funny but i relised why my kicks with my left were never as accurate like my right. Maybe you have had a back injury in the past and something of late has triggered a loss in co-ordination in your arm in certain positions I hope not for your sake.
This is weird. It sounds like you suddenly have problem with hand and eye coordination. Do you miss shots that are "non-overhead"?
Hey smarty333, That's really strange of what you have just gone through. Most likely it's a psychological issue since I don't see you stating any injuries that might affect your judgement. It sounds somewhat familiar to the 'Steve Blass disease'. It happens to baseball pitchers who suddenly couldn't pitch well at all in every single way they try, all in a short time frame. Just concentrate with really simple shots for the moment, to get your co-ordination back in working order. ----- Or maybe you might be needing glasses!
Is that possible due to change of equipment (i.e. racket, shuttle speed, etc), or change of playing environment (i.e. different gym)?
To answer the questions: No, I never had an spinal injuries. I can hit underhand and backhand shots fine. I did change my racket, but that was after the problem started occuring. My racket got stolen so I had no choice but to get another one...Talk about bad luck. Thanks for the advice so far, I agree that I should relax.
This has happened to me a couple of times in other sports. What worked for me was taking a short break and spending a week or so away from the game. If nothing has changed equipment wise then it's probably just psychological as others have said. It could even be the result of stress spilling over from work life affecting your game. In football it's not uncommon for good players to be dropped for a short period because they aren't playing too well and a rest is needed.
it's happened to me before. one for a video game and one for badminton. both had the same occurence procedure. before i was all confident and knew that i "can do this!" type of thing. i had the feeling of full control my body (and hand for the video game). but then i started practicing way too much. trying to polish my technique even better. result? the exact opposite. i got worse and it was all screwed. i started to practice a heck lot more, and got even worse.. it was so anxiety provoking. what u need is a break. don't even think about it and come back when you finally had the sudden urge of "i wanna play badminton so badly" not when "o man.. i wanna fix my technique". hope that helps
i'm near sighted -1.0 and i need to wear glasses in classes otherwise i cant see anything written on blackboard yet, i play badminton without glasses nor contact lenses. furthermore i doubt any eye problem can occur spontaneously
hm...to think of it...the more i play..the worst i get..and after a few weeks away from badminton...and coming back to it...my skill went even higher than when i last played..weird..
growth also doesnt occur spontaneously.. it takes time to gain a distinctive height and from his statement it seems like he didnt have any absence of playing, so he should be used to his own timing. sudden burst of 1-3 cm might mess up his timing but i'm sure it doesn't happen to any of us in short period of time, right?
well i grew 2 inches in 3 weeks a couple of years ago... it caused me to dislocate my growth joint in my hip. (so people can grow "overnight" )
for now, stop trying to do it "techniclaly perfect" use your left hand to point at the shuttle and basically do the type of stroke kids do.. return to the basics.
it happened to me once. i had a fever and i decided since i'm very impatient that i would go play some badminton! the first 30 minutes of that dropin were HELL. my clears were drives and i had to carefully re-construct my form and stroke altogether. not too smart on my part. dont do wut i did XD
Yeah, I've had that situation. Somehow, you just can't seem to whack that birdie (and I wanted it dead). It happened to me sporadically. At some days I can accurately hit the shuttlecock; and some days I can't. I found out that at those days when I can hit properly, I had proper warm-ups. Trust me. Warm-ups are important. A good five to ten minutes would do the trick. It's, I guess, like a violin (or a guitar but violins are alot cooler); you tune your violin right before the concert. Hey I hope this helps! Keith
