Playing against a wall

Discussion in 'Techniques / Training' started by rwg05, Jun 4, 2007.

  1. rwg05

    rwg05 Regular Member

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    Is playing on a wall advantageous or disadvantageous to your game?

    I guess the one major advantage would be that it does improve your reaction time.

    I've been told, however, that playing on a wall is detrimental to your game as the strokes you would play on a court are different from those that are played on a wall...and so your strokes suffer. Is this true?
     
  2. LazyBuddy

    LazyBuddy Regular Member

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    Playing against wall should be just 1 out of many practices you perform. It surely helps your reaction and wrist strength, only if you perform it using the correct strokes, but not only focusing on "bounce the shuttle" back.

    Do it, and do it correctly is the key. ;)
     
  3. Misbehavin

    Misbehavin Regular Member

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    I play mainly doubles and was recently very unhappy with my reaction time.

    I have found that my recent practises against the wall has improved my reaction time enormously.

    Like Lazybuddy said you need to use the correct strokes ... and stance for the strokes ... and move your feet to the shuttle.

    I mainly practice smash returns such as using the correct grip, taking the shuttle in front, block and flick back to the wall.

    I use a $5 badminton (heavier) racket for practising ... for extra resistance.
    After that using my regular racket is a breeze.
     
    #3 Misbehavin, Jun 4, 2007
    Last edited: Jun 4, 2007
  4. SaintDragon

    SaintDragon Regular Member

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    I play against the wall using backhand only to improve the strength of my backhand stroke since it's a very weak part of my game. I've have noticed a lot of improvement in terms of strength after practicing weekly.
     
  5. cwong

    cwong Regular Member

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    Why don't you try hitting against the wall for 20 mins non-stop, then play a doubles game after?

    You'll be pleasantly surprised.
     
  6. chapree

    chapree Regular Member

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    Yup, I agree, there's some improvement. Reaction time is the most common one I guess.
     
  7. chickenpoodle

    chickenpoodle Regular Member

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    reaction speed and strength are the two most beneficial things of playing off the wall.

    as lazybuddy had already mentioned, you should be using the correct set of strokes and footwork, treating the wall as nothing more than an unbeatable opponent.

    pretty much every shot is do-able, including ones with some semblence to net shots and pushes.
     
  8. azabaz_ipoh

    azabaz_ipoh Regular Member

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    like saintdragon, i practice backhands, mostly. my backhand sucks too. and yes, reaction time improved. but i also realized that the strokes that i used in wall banging are slightly different from real game. :)
     
  9. SystemicAnomaly

    SystemicAnomaly Regular Member

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    Slanted wall

    Has NE1 had the opportunity to try this on a slanted wall? This might be much better for drives & some other shots.

    The best practice walls for tennis are either parabolic or walls at a slant (15 degrees or so sounds like what I've heard is optimum). These walls rebound the ball upward slightly instead of having the ball immediately fall downward after (wall) impact.
     
  10. bchaiyow

    bchaiyow Regular Member

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    I usually play at public gyms or school gyms, so the walls tend to ahve lots of lines on them. What I do when I hit against the wall is find 2 lines and hit the bird between these 2 lines. The height ot the bottom line is about net height and the top line is about 1-2 feet above the bottom one. I would vary how hard I hit the bird..but usually I will do drive/low smash return type shots. I think this will help with control and reaction speed. sometimes the bird would hit one of the cracks on the wall and it would go straight down :D that means it's a drop shot...and I would have to quickly react to that as well.

    bchaiyow
     
  11. stumblingfeet

    stumblingfeet Regular Member

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    I find that hitting it against the wall is a good way to develop body awareness - you can learn how to return shots from behind your back or through the legs or even around your body the long way. However, I find that I'll get sloppier on the following:

    - positioning based on opponent's shot placement
    - shot placement based on opponent's position
    - feel for the hitting just above the tape
    - high end reactivity in the hands/fingers

    For the last point, think about the shuttle velocity when it contacts your racquet. If it is very fast, your hands and fingers need to move quickly to generate force in reaction to contact with the shuttle. If you do so, you will have control of the shuttle. If you don't, then you'll have trouble controlling your shot.

    Think about how fast the bird is moving after bouncing off a wall. Then, compare that to how fast it is after a hard drive, or a smash. There's a big difference, and that's one of the limitations of drives against the wall - shuttle speed is quite slow.

    I'm thinking one solution could be to hit a small rubber "bouncy ball" against the wall. The trajectory would be different than a real shuttle, but in terms of the impact force-time curve it might be more similar to that of receiving a hard shot. It's something I'll try out at some point in the future.
     
  12. Misbehavin

    Misbehavin Regular Member

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    Interesting stumblingfeet ... I bought some foam golf balls but I haven't had a real good hit at them yet.
     
  13. stumblingfeet

    stumblingfeet Regular Member

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    Foam golf balls? I'm not really sure if that's the kind of ball I'm thinking of... doesn't foam tend to deform and absorb energy for impacts?

    The kind of ball I'm thinking are the rubbery balls that bounce very high. I probably have some back home from when I was a kid.
     
  14. cooler

    cooler Regular Member

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    yes, a right kind of ball might bounce back faster but a shuttle rebouncing off the wall is more unpredictable so it still can train reaction time. I think both kind has its purpose in making improvement in reaction.
     
  15. rwg05

    rwg05 Regular Member

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    In south India, a variant of badminton called 'ball badminton' is quite popular...perhaps the ball used for ball badminton would be ideal.

    ps: thanks for all the advice...now I can play on a wall without any feelings of guilt!
     
  16. zuihoujueding

    zuihoujueding Regular Member

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    I use a $5 badminton (heavier) racket for practising ... for extra resistance.
    After that using my regular racket is a breeze.[/quote]



    that makes sense! why havent i think of that!
     
  17. nafan

    nafan Regular Member

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    I tried hitting against a wall yesterday, but it was too low and thin, and there was stuff on the floor so I found it hard...
    I agree with SystemicAnomaly as I think this would work, interesting to try I'm sure...
    Time to move legs is perhaps as or more important than arms, so during this practice you must try to move your feet...

    Nathan
     
  18. XKazeCloudX

    XKazeCloudX Regular Member

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    When I hit it against a wall I find it hard to hit it again with a proper stroke. Its usualy not my reaction that slows me down so I wouldn't recommend it. But I suggest if you do practice on a wall try your best to hit it with proper stokes. I found myself leaping and jumping and stumbling when I was playing the wall lol.
     
  19. morewood

    morewood Regular Member

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    As per an earlier post I am going to suggest a cheap table tennis ball for wall practice. (cheap beacuse you will break it quite quickly).
     
  20. baddictx

    baddictx Regular Member

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    I do this as a warmup exercise to improve my focus and concentration. It really helps improve my defense and reaction time as well.
     

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