hey, I was really bored at home yesterday so i decided to take a few pics and vid. of me swinging my racket around. Yes i know its in my backyard, but i couoldnt go to an actual badminton court. Anyways it wouldnt make any difference if it was indoors. I was wondering if u guys can spot any mistakes in my technique. Some things that i notice(im no expert though)from comparing my swing to that of a pro is that : 1. Im not swinging/reaching high enough 2. im not rotating at the hips enough 3. I am leaning back too much. 4. I am reaching to far out (away from my body) One thing that makes this video bad is that im not actually hitting a bird and in a real game situation where im not always in position. But when im bored, and I cant go play badminton (indoors of course) I just go in my backyard ans wing my racket to "perfect" my technique and strengthen my muscles. I just wanted to make sure that im practising the right technique and making bad habits. I have been playing for 1 year, and the problem i have (especially in singles) is my clears. They're just not going far enough. anyways here are the pics and vid.
nice pics. onyl thing I notice is your not using your legs. you should "step and turn" endign with your right foot forward. that motion alone throws all your weight into your swing. and is also the basis for a scissors jump, but let's not worry about that. can't see this in the pic. but try not to lean back much, and tension up your abs to throw your upper body forward. might be vague on the pictures. but is your racketshaft point upwards? Does your rackethead contact the shuttle perpendicular? (head on, right?) good luck
here are some more pics that are more close up (ie: focus on solely my swing, not so much rotation etc) hey, I just realized that i can not put .avi type videos on. If u know on "semi-private" websites that i could put it on please let me know. In the mean time if u really want to see em i could email them to you. The picture above are taken from the video so its preatty much the same. Hopefully next time i play, ill get a real video of me in an actual game. That way you can name all the things i need to improve on . Thanks
Btw, badminton strokes truly are alike with those of tennis (well the serve), but your left hand shouldn't be straightened all the way, it should form about a 90 degree angle - don't bring your right shoulder down before hitting, the shoulders should be on the same line (vertically). Post the video so i'll check out your forearm pronation.
hey, sorry i cant post the video but if u really want it i can email it to you. In the first set of pictures u can see that my palm does end up facing inward towards my body. But when exactly that occured is hard to tell.
Good swing action - seems like a pro . But u need more rotation on yr body & correct legs movement. May be u can share yr jumping smash as well.
You are not in accordance with Punch Gunalan's mandate that badminton attire should be more ... "attractive." Other than that, not bad. -dave
Blahblah, Don't forget your non-racquet arm. It's crucial that you pull in that arm before swinging at a shuttle. Also, as Jerby mentioned... your feet positions must be in line with your swing.
from what i see, your elbow isnt high enough upon contact, the contact point should be directly above you(i noticed you are taking the shot at the side), and your racquet side leg should be in front after you hit(i noticed your racquet side leg is on the side after the swing). it should be similar to a throwing motion. you can practice by throwing shuttles as far and as high as you can. Then try to use the same motion to swing. anyway, just my 2¢.
From the limited information given by those pictures, I believe that your arm swing is very good. Don't change it. You need to take your feet off the ground, however, to allow your shoulders to turn about 180 degrees during the swing. At the moment, your shoulders are being held back by your static hips; this is inhibiting your otherwise smooth, powerful swing. You should finish the movement with your right shoulder forward and your left shoulder behind you; and with your right foot forward and left foot back. You should land "left foot, right foot" in quick succession, using your left foot to push forwards for recovery. In this way, your whole body will turn during the stroke, providing greater power.
hey, thanks for all ur advice!!! From what I see/read is that most of your critiques r that im not rotating enough. I will try that the next time to see how it goes. Do you think that my clears are only going 3/4 of the way solely because of me not rotating and not moving my feet, or do u think that practise has something to do with it. Like, do u think that if my hips would rotate, my clear wouold go that extra 1/4 of the way farther? Or would it be that it would make it go like an extra 1/8 (0.5/4) of the way and the other 1/8 would be from practising my current technique (ie: not changing my stroke at all)? ^^^^Some math for u guys lol ^^^^. Im only 15 so my strength isnt all that great but i have been taking group lessons for almost a full year (just so u know lol) Thanks again. Ill try and take some picture of me doing the clear with hips, and maybe the jumpsmash, when and if I have time. Thanks
after 1 year of badminton. And ,I don't mean to be offensive, not mastering the basics. stay away from jumpsmashes for a while. I'd say leave of the Sigit smashes for a while. standing will give you a more stable hitting platform and keeps timing normal. timign your jump will be very hard anyway in your teens: your constently growing and your legpower increases as well. As for your clear length. It depends on your legs/hipstrength and, most importantly, timing. I know some players that couldd probably not make it 1/2 without rotating...and some players that can hit hard, and add a 30% by rotating. and players that rotate and nothing extra happens... timing is key!
No offense taken! I agree with u though that beginners shouldnt jump smash. I only jumpsmash in doubles but when i do it is not a full out jump, its just a little hop, to gain some distance and angle, not so much ofr power. I 100% agree with you that timing is key. Ive been noticing that im ever so slightly "slicing" the bird. I can feel when i get a straight on hit: 1. theres less vibration 2. A huge "BOOM" sound and 3. It goes preatty much the full court. When my timing is off (usually because im out of position ) the hit doesnt feel/sound as solid and only goes 3/4 of the way. I geuss thats where practise (and of course hips ) come in.
about the jumpsmash. same here. as for not slicing the bird, here's what I do: -take your right foot back, your left shoulder is just barely pointing straight at the shuttle. don't overrotate as is take away your vision. -turn your wrist (don't change grip!) you that your racket face is at a 90 deg angle with the shuttle direction. -followthrew as normal (including legs/hips ) and concentrate on hitting and following threw with your racket square on the shuttle. then listen to a nice BOOM also check out: http://www.ibbs.tv/IBBS/home/freevideos.aspx just register...
Thanks for your advice. Let me just make sure that i understood what your trying to say. SO basically... -stand with my left shoulder pointing at the shuttle -turn my wrist so that i dont have to worry about pronation of the forearm right now - rotate and concentrate on a clean hit Thanks again
well, I still use my wrist when I smash. but concentrate on gettign that wrist motion in line with the shuttle. It's hard to explain. but sometimes you see players swing. and the swing strikes the shuttle with a 20deg angle. creating such a slice effect. and when you minimized that angle, start worrying about pronation/supination
The most common reason for not clearing from back court to back court is simply not standing behind the shuttle when you hit. Any time when the shuttle is directly on top or behind you, you can not poccess much power with your stroke. Which is the main reason why footwork should be the first thing to work on, if you are planning to become a great player.
For normal clears, full arm rotation & legs switching r not necessary. The hitting technique shown in yr pics above is very good. For smashes, they r necessary. Btw, above pics, u were doing smashing or clearing ? I thought u r were smashing .