Can't Break Opponent's Defense

there are uncountable threads about smashes. just run a search and you'll find plenty of info.

if it's not your strokes, it could be that your smashes are too predictable, lack variation and poor smash placement. either go for the lines or directly onto the opponent's body. also, better set-ups allow you to produce better smashes

 

agree with the above totally and one more thing that id like to add is .... try not to always smash from baseline cos ....

1) if u dont have a strong smash ... chances ar they can 'reply' easily and sometimes deadly !
2) opponent have a better view of the shuttlecock if u smash from baseline

.... other than that as per above or post by DivingBirdie ... try find out ur opponent's weak defense side ... left ? right ? does ur opponent get to the back of the court while u initiating the smash ? if so u should make the smash as sharp as possible and bare in mind power is not a major concern to do that kinda smash ... lastly wat abt try to smash to the baseline ... tat is if ur opponent stand up straight at the centre or slightly infront waiting ?
...... its easier said than done ... but i suggest practice 1 target at a time till u get the 'feel' in ur fingertips ....

cheers !

 

Smash and drop along the mid-line between the opponents. Their confusion and fear of clash will decimate their reaction time and cause them to break their own defence.

One no brainer for training smash is to to keep smashing in the game. In about 3 months, you will be a superior smasher.

 

A few general things to work on.

1. Vary the pace and placement of your smashes. Mix in drops to the centre.

2. Learn how to rotate the attack with your partner

3. And most importantly, play for your partner. This means playing your shots to give your net player the best chance of killing the shuttle. Think about what kind of angles you need to play to make this happen. At higher levels, it is quite difficult for the rear court player to win the points outright. More often than not, it is the net player that dictates the play. Start thinking about your shots in terms of how you can best set up your partner.

Wayne Young

 

Actually sometimes its not going to work just by simply pointing out your opponent's weak point. Esp in doubles and against advanced players. There's only two strategy if you want to win by smash, one, keep on smashing and develop a good rotation with your partner and pray that your opponent makes an error. Two, you need to move your opponents rigorously until they lose their composure then you start smashing over and over. Either way, you need to have good fitness. There is no such thing as an easy match.

But a general rule I develop for myself and my trainees is, never smash an opponent who is good at defending if their composure is good, unless you do expect a good reply and have that planned as part of your strategy.

 

totally agree with u !

 

Of course, but what does that mean exactly? I've had some useless coaches tell me stuff that I know is true, but without any specific cues or ideas on how to implement that idea, nothing actually improves in the game.

The principle I work with is that of inertia. As the shuttle moves with a higher momentum (i.e. it is moving really fast) it becomes progressively harder to change its direction. So, we can imagine an opponent's potential returns as a cone with its centreline being the original path of your smash. The angle at the top of the cone (which defines the range where the shuttle can be returned) is a function of how skilled a returner he is over how hard of a smasher you are. Also, this cone would have an associated probability of success function associated with the amount of deflection from the original centreline path that the return shot gives.

So, using this "cone model" of smash returns, to optimize your effectiveness using brute speed and power would involve having the net player positioned over the centreline of your smash when looking at the court from a top down view and therefore able to attack the return shot should they come his/her way. Let's break this down into roles for each player:

Back court player: look to see where you partner is. If he/she's standing over the middle, smashing down the line means that the easy returns will be to someplace that he/she isn't standing, so you can lose the attack if your smash doesn't produce an outright winner. Instead, smash the bird towards the middle, where your partner is standing.

Net player - figure out where all the juicy spots for your partner to smash, and move yourself so you get into position to make the kill. For example, let's say that you know your opponent is leaving the down the line smash area vulnerable. What you have to do then is step over to that side so you can attack a down-the-line-smash return, which enables your partner to smash there knowing you'll be there to finish it off.

So essentially, when you get the lift both of you must make the same decision on approximately where on the court to attack. Of course, there are many more things to consider, such as determining how far from the net to stand, what to do in a "transition" offence, etc. but hopefully this will get you started.

 

Stumblingfeet, that's a good overview of where to put the smash. But if we're going to be specific, then ideally, the centre-line of the cone needs to be moved slightly over to the net players forehand, rather than centred through the net player. This way, the likelihood of the net player needing to twist onto his backhand is reduced and the probability of the return passing through the zone where it's easiest to kill is increased.

Wayne Young

 

Just to add a little more to the above, this idea of positioning the smash to maximise the chance of the return coming on to the net player's forehand is particularly important when the lift is on the far right for a right handed rear court player, and his net player is also right handed.

Having said that, the above is just a guide. Obviously one can't just hit it to the same place all the time.

Wayne Young

 

Good point on smashing it over the racquet arm.

Of course, this is just one particular type of attack that is possible, I guess it could be called the "pressure attack". It seems to be most effective against players with decent defensive positioning and skills. In such a case, you're simply playing to take advantage of your superior positioning (having received the lift).

In mixed doubles, I often find myself using a different strategy against certain types of opponents. Sometimes, I find that a guy will try to cover for his partner a bit too much on the court -> he's playing modified singles rather than doubles. A good strategy against such an opponent is to run him side to side by attacking to the alleys down the side. With this type of attack, my partner mostly guards against the crosscourt counter-attack, which typically doesn't come very frequently if the opponent is smart. So, my partner doesn't end up hitting that many shots. When the opponent wisens up and uses a more conventional doubles defensive position, which distributes the defensive roles more evenly, then we switch to the pressure attack. Of course, if the opposing girl's defense is so bad that they used such a modified defensive position, then we use the opportunity to put the pressure on her.

 

stop smahing that much and do some drops ^^

 

not being able to smash through ur opponents can get frusterating in doubles. Just try to set up your partner at the net. Get more angle and smash in the middle also occasionally smash at a shallow angle to catch ur opponents off guard. If you are relaxed enough you can also notice things like if your opponent stands favoring his forehand smash to his back hand or if they are weak at shots directed straight for them... stuff like taht

 

half-smashes and 80% smashes are always good cos if they mistime it, it's usually a crap shot