most difficult shot to master

[pathan]

I think the backhand smash is pretty hard to master... but once you get the hang of relaxing the wrist and raising the elbow up first... it's a breeze and then you get addicted to overusing it.

[juventus1]

For me...as a double player

the most difficult move- receiving serve in doubles as it combine speed, launching pace and alertness.

the most difficult shot - drive (timing, stroke and strength is very difficult to master)

as for smash and backhand...although it is crucial for smash but it is not that difficult to master the correct stroke. jumping smash is required good foot step and stamina. for backhand, try to avoid using backhand as it is more of a defensive shot especially cross court. backhand is good enough if you can clear and drive. backhand smash is advisable not to use.

[Tadashi]

Most people claim: crosscourt net is difficult, then try it this way

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mg2S6...e_gdata_player

[yerrorice]

Most people claim: crosscourt net is difficult, then try it this way

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mg2S6...e_gdata_player

Lol I actually find that easier

[Kipper_34]

BACKHAND clear, can't get it to the back of the court :'(

[fruitychees]

BACKHAND clear, can't get it to the back of the court :'(

if you do it right, its easier than you think.

[Tadashi]

if you do it right, its easier than you think.

body turn is key and high elbow. eventually hit the sweet spot. too.

[AirStyles]

Jump Smash.

Its not hard to jump smash, but to be actually good at jump smash is hard.

[firetab]

Going against the grain here. My vote is for the "Backhand Short Serve" in doubles. Here are 3 reasons why:

1. It is the most played shot (and if it isn't, something's wrong)
Every "book-smart" rally starts with a solid short serve. How many service errors do you make a game? How many points are lost due to serving short or too high? With a strong rear-court player, this shot is worth its weight in golden shuttlecocks. However, this means the shot only pays dividends at the high-intermediate level. At the professional level, one has to deal with the intense mental pressure from serving to other players with a physical, dynamic return of serve repertoire.

2. It is not respected and its importance is underestimated.
There is a phrase, "people respect what you inspect". In this case, people only realize their service flaws when they face a competent, quick opponent who can aggressively return flicks with a foot on the service line. In many games, I have had my short serve broken down by "return of serve specialists".

3. It is played with poor technique.
Did you know that the short serve is supposed to be struck not from the middle of the racket, but from near the top? That it only uses the fingers and wrist? Until recently, I didn't either. Here's a great video from Cai Yun (unfortunately, in Chinese) that teaches the technique: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIJ2LC9wCkc

So don't underestimate the shot and make sure your technique is correct and clean today!

---
Marketing Specialist at Zco Corporation | Custom Mobile App Developer

[firetab]

In summary, the reason the backhand short serve is so difficult to master is because you won't know how weak it is until it is too late.

[j4ckie]

Hm. Can only partially agree on that - it is one of the most vital shots in the game, that's true. I think we all cringe in sympathy whenever Cheng Wen Hsing tries to serve short...or gets the predictable flick serve smashed right in her face.
However, I wouldn't say it's one of the hardest shots. If your opponent isn't toeing the line, you're either not playing at a very high level or it's a rather rare quirk of his - in both cases there's no pressure on your serve.
Now, if your opponent is good at returning the serve, there's definitely mental pressure - but that's what makes this shot hard at all. Otherwise it would be one of the easiest in the game, since you get to stand still while doing it!
Anyway, I think the serve in and of itself isn't particularly hard to do. The mental pressure makes it hard, sure, but what's more important - a HUGE amount of players just does it wrong. That's one of the most neglected shots doesn't make it hard to master, though

Btw, it's rather easy to practice your serve as well - since you need no one to feed you the shuttle (as you do when practicing any other shot, like a backhand clear, for example), you can do it for as long as you want and as often as you possibly can. It's boring, sure, but remembering the last match where your opponent smacked your serves into the floor left and right can be great motivation - as can the matches where your opponents failed to return it in any aggressive manner and had to resort to lifting it or made errors.

As with all shots, you just need what to look for when practicing (i.e. that it goes flat over the net and lands close to the line, and that you don't need to move much to vary it)

[Pakito]

That's right, you can imagine how boring it is to practice serving but in fact, it's very vital and all adds up to how professional a player is a packaged all rounded player. If you have a weak short serve, you can forget about playing doubles.

[Pakito]

A difficult shot to master is 'the smash on the move'. The reason being it's the shot that requires timing 'on the move' as compared to waiting for the shuttle to drop and then jumping up to smash which is relatively easy. In the realistic setting, no one is going to feed you a nice 'bola tanggung' for you to enjoy your smash. Everything is on the move. The net, the slice, the jab, the lunge save, the crosscourt net all is while your are on the move. The smash while on the move requires exquisite timing, angle, speed and recovery to base position simply because you throw yourself around the court after a jump.

The the all time winner is still the 'double motion' shot. A double motion shot can include just about any type of shot, including both overhead and underarm strokes, both backhand and forehand. They may look easy and delightful to watch ie Zhao JianHua, but in fact there are just so many types and ways to it that only the masters know and keep in the vault. Peter Gade, Xia Xuanze, Poul Hoyer Larsen are players who possesses such skills. Morten, Taufik, Sun Jun, Kok Keong are straight forward no monkeying around players. Misbun and Rashid are slice, chop, drop and lob players.

[Tadashi]

That's right, you can imagine how boring it is to practice serving but in fact, it's very vital

Doubles teams on international level have an average failure rate of 4% when serving (short). In hundred times only four fail, or statistically less than one in ten. I always feel confident about my service, if I practice it and approach the error rate of three in ten, which is still bad enough!

[j4ckie]

3 in 10 is indeed nothing to boast about

[CHC7576]

The masters of double motion in the 70s have to be Punch Gunalan from Malaysia, Bandid Jayan(Thailand) and Elor Hasan of Denmark. Check it out .

[bowi12]

For me it's the backhand clear/smash. I probably need to practice that a bit more. I was able to do it during our training camp. But haven't used it much afterwards.