Drops Shots: Techniques

Discussion in 'Techniques / Training' started by tonten, Sep 19, 2002.

  1. tonten

    tonten Regular Member

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    arghhhh........ I busted my arm more than a month ago, and I found out now that it wasn't completely healed. Now, I cannot do anything over extraneous for a month.

    Well, I was thinking this might be the perfect opportunity to practice on drop shops



    I used to be able to do underhand drop shots 2 years ago, but now, I can't do any drop shots at all.


    I've noticed three type of drop shots people do while on court (There may be more, but can't think of any right now. It's 2 in the morning):

    Backcourt Overhead Drop shot

    Frontcourt Underhand Drop shot

    Frontcourt Overhead Tap

    (And the Backhands, heh)

    The problem with me is that I CANNOT drop at ALL. Nadda. Zero. (This totally hinders my playing ability, but somehow I have managed over the years without using drop shots. Must because my partner's the one who's doing them for me muhahaha)


    My question is, How Does one Drop?

    Do you use any arm at all to push the bird, or is it pure wrist?

    Should the racket head be closed, flat, or open at the point of contact?

    How hard does one normally hit the bird, or does one even hit the bird at all?

    Do you put body into your drop shots?

    At what angle should the birdy be hit. Should the Birdy be in front of you, on top of your head, behind you? Should the birdy be a little to your right, to the left?

    Do you even swing at all?


    (Whenever I try to do a backcourt overhead dropshot or a frontcourt underhand dropshot, I either hit the net or the bird flies perfectly mid court so that the opponent can smash it back down.

    Whenver I try to do a frontcourt tap, my birdy goes at a smashing angle [Basically, the tap beocomes a small smash] and it lands near the opponent and not right straight down across the net.)
     
  2. trapped-never

    trapped-never Regular Member

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    Basic basesline dropshot is the same technique like baseline clear. Just put there less power. It's pretty easy, you should learn it in no time. If you are very high then maybe you will need to adjust the wrist a little to push the shuttle more downwards.
     
  3. ivan

    ivan Regular Member

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    In fact, I found that drop shot is a very diffecult stroke to perform. I mean, yah, most people can kindda do what Trapped-never mentioned, tap the bird from baseline. but the nagetive side of it, is that when you are trying to perfrom such task, your intention is very easily to be discovered by experienced people, also, the shuttle won't carry enough speed to be effective. In another words, if you want to put speed on the shuttle, you will have to hit harder, but if you hit harder, the shuttle will travel too deep, thus it will not be very effective. the best way to do it is to cut it from my point of view, the bird will carry enough speed while travel less distance. The preparation for the cut shot is exactly like you are preparing for any forehand shots, but in order to get the nice curve, the hit point must be high and when you cut it, you should cut it from the side by using wrist follow by the forearm. Its kindda hard to just tell you how to do it, but try it, you'll get what i am talking about
     
  4. trapped-never

    trapped-never Regular Member

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    Well, I would say that correctly played dropshot (with clear like style) is pretty much deceptive. The first notice that you do not play clear is sound of the stroke... I play cutted dropshots as well. It is very effective, but as ivan said it is way more difficult to master. I would advice learning step by step.
     
  5. Yong

    Yong Regular Member

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    I agree with trapped-never that doing a drop with clear-like style is pretty deceptive. Until the last moment, you can still decide what shot you'r gonna play.

    Btw, I heard that Pete sampras practiced his deceptive serve by letting his coach decide and yell at the last moment which direction he had to serve.

    Maybe its a nice drill to do : let your training partner yell at the last moment what you have to do : clear / drop / smash

    To the original question : The Frontcourt Underhand drop shot (isn't this called a Netdrop ?:) )The way i like them to do : stand not too close to the net, but for instance a small step from the service line (depending on legs length, game situation, etc) so you can stretch your arm. Make sure your arm is not too far below netlevel. To perform the shot, just strech the arm with the head of the racket pointing only a little downwards, either backhand or forehand, depending on your position. While doing the stretch, do not lift your racket with you wrist, the strech itself gives enough power. You can try to adjust the speed of the stretch and the angle of the racket head to more horizontal, in order to let the shuttle tumble while going over the net. A tumbling shuttle is difficult to return, especitally when it hits the net.
     
  6. jwu

    jwu Regular Member

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    agree w/ trapped-never and yong that a baseline drop is very deceptive especially if you have a threatening smash or decent clear. Here are how I usually approach some of the shots mentioned:

    baseline drop: Stroke starts out the exact same way as a clear or a smash but I meet the ball at the highest point w/ only a slight wrist movement (for direction) rather than a full swing. Usually hit the shuttle slightly ahead of myself with the racquet face facing forward and slightly facing down (have to adjust depending on how tall you are, I'm 5'8" (173cm) and I hit it at ~80 degree)

    netdrop (underhand): This is a really tough shot for me to learn since you really need to know your own strength. I usually hit these shots w/ a cut or a slice and no wrist movement. Just kind of "push" the shuttle over w/ the forearm, not sure if this is the correct way but I just adopted from my tennis net play and so far it's working. When I hit this kind of shot with some wrist movement, I usually end up lifting the shuttle too high and then having it come back at my face. Best thing I can compare this shot to is a really really short serve.

    netdrop (others): If you meet the shuttle around shoulder height or higher, best way to drop is to cut. This way the shuttle tumbles and wobbles over the net, pretty hard to hit.

    Well, most important thing for myself in learning the drop is get to know my own strength and how to control that. If you consistently hit the shots too high, to the mid-court...etc, then hit slightly lighter than that and then adjust to it. Like everything, just keep on practicing and good luck.
    :)
     
  7. gerry

    gerry Regular Member

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    drop shots

    Drop shots, (fast or slow) from the baseline are exactly the same preparation and execution as the smash or clear, it's all about deception, with the slow drop at the last second you slow down the execution and push the shuttle netwards, the trajectory is slightly up with the shuttle dying just over net height.
    The fast drop is just a check smash, same prep and exe as the smash, just reduce power and less follow through so that the shuttle falls steeply in the forecourt area.
    The main point is always to ensure that preparation and execution always looks the same for all rear court shots....keep your opponants guessing until the last second.
     
  8. RedDog

    RedDog Regular Member

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    Since I'm usually the net player in the mix formation, I took a lotta time talking about net drops with my coach. And he keeps reminding me that never hold your racket too tight, only use your thumb and index finger with the rest of your fingers grip lightly around the racket. Don't stand too close to the net, leave enough space to reach your arm and have your racket head just close enough to the net. Keep your racket foot front and the other back with your knees slightly bent. Use a complete stroke, and follow through with your drops even after you hit the bird. The most importent thing is relax and take it easy on the drops. It's easy to tense up and worry about not being to dope the bird over, that will usually end up messing up the drop...so just relax, and believe in yourself...confidence plays a big part no matter what kinda shot you're hitting. Hope this helps...I'm still trying to master it.

    I know Kwun is good at droping from the baseline...maybe he can give you some good tips on that.
     
  9. RedDog

    RedDog Regular Member

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    the pinky grip would work too...

    To add on that, also try Kwun's "pinky grip" for an effective net drop.

    click here

    again, the point is don't hold the racket too tight...give it a try, it's been working pretty well for me, but I'm not ready to use the technique in a real tournament yet, still need more practice. Good luck~;)
     
  10. Californian

    Californian Regular Member

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    Deep-court overhead drops

    Of all the shots in badminton, the backcourt overhead drop seems to have the most variation in technique among players.

    There are two extreme types of overhead drops.

    1. The drop off the clear is supposed to look like a clear at the beginning. It has a loop to it--a high trajectory, then drops down very steeply, falling down nearly parallel to the net and close to it. Because it takes a relatively long path, it has to be used carefully, otherwise the opponent will intercept it close to net level. The purpose is to draw the opponent all the way up to the net and, if they reach it, force a short clear or a desperation hairpin net drop. It is primarily a singles shot.

    2. The other is the drop off the smash, which has the same immediate downward trajectory as the smash, just clearing the top of the net and falling short of where a smash would go. It is a quicker, lower shot than the looping drop, making it safer to use and the most common doubles overhead drop. It travels further into the court, though, so it does not force the opponent to move as much.

    All drops are somewhere in this range.

    Now, as for technique, I could list about ten different ways I’ve seen deep-court OH drops hit, but it might be a long, boring post, so I’ll just say this…

    I once heard one of our top national players talk about the difference between hitting the smash or clear, and the drop. I don’t remember exactly how he said it, but the difference had to do with the contraction of the forearm muscles. The arm swing is the same, but the drop is hit with a relaxed forearm and loose grip. To hit a hard shot, you would tense up or tighten or contract the forearm muscles at the last moment to create the racket speed and power.

    I suppose the best way to practice this is to hit plenty of drops first to practice the deep-court OH drop motion. Use a normal forehand OH technique (minimal arm motion), but use a very relaxed forearm so you don't impart power to the shot. Then, using the same motion, try to hit harder shots by contracting the forearm muscles at the last moment to accelerate the swing. It might take some time to develop this.
     
  11. kwun

    kwun Administrator

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    as others have said. do a drop as if you are doing a clear. that means smooth swing. some people will tell you to not swing and just use your wrist to "tap" it. don't listen to them. do the whole swing, you will be happy that you did in the future.

    as mentioned, everything about a drop shot is the same as a clear, except for the last moment of execution. drop shots are much more relaxed and the swing speed is lower. use your wrist and fingers to control the speed and angle of the drop.

    and yes, the key and i will say this 50 times if i need to, is to relax while you do it. if you tense up, you can still smash or clear, but you won't be able to drop at all.

    relax is difficult to do, "relax, relax" must be the most said word for a badminton coach! i have had a coach who'd hold my arm and shake it till i am relaxed.

    it is difficult, but you must try to do it. do lots of drills, lots and lots of it. if you think you are too tense in a game, play against someone of a little bit lower level. a tense game against strong players by definition makes you tense. good luck.
     
  12. TDotSmAsHer

    TDotSmAsHer Regular Member

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    Strange... I can never drop it accurately using tap motion. Maybe I just suck. I find slicing it for fast and slow drops is the most accurate way for me. :)
     
  13. Californian

    Californian Regular Member

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    I should have mentioned that you want to go through the same motion as you would for a hard shot, particularly drawing or tilting the racket back before the forward motion of the swing. When you swing, there is still some speed in the swing, but your wrist is limp, so there is no power to transfer to the shot. I think that drawing back of the racket before the shot helps the deception.
     
  14. ivan

    ivan Regular Member

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    exactly what I mean in the pervious post. Sorry if I didn't say it clear enough and confused some of the people. if you tap it, you gotta finish the whole movement, not only the wrist part, otherwise the bird won't has enough speed and deception, but watch out on how much pressure you put on the bird while you are trying to finish the whole movement.
     
  15. Chun

    Chun Regular Member

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    OH Drop

    1. "Regular" drop
    Same swing as clear, no wrist snap. Swing of the arm will provide enough force to get the shuttle over the net & since arm swing involves bigger muscles and less volatile force on the shuttle, has more control/consistency than "tap' drop.

    2. slice drop
    Violent swing of arm and wrist to provide deception, but slicing. The swing of the arm will provide forward momentum and slicing of the shuttle by wrist snap will spin & slow down the shuttle to the "regular drop" trajectory.

    3. cut drop
    Same swing & angle as the smash, including wrist snap, but cutting (slice forward) the shuttle. Heryanto Arby is notoriously good at this "half-court smash" that lands just about at front service line corner in singles. When in attacking position only.

    Net Drop hints

    Relaxed upper body.
    When moving to hit a net drop, lead with your racquet, don't get there and bring the racquet up to hit the shot.
    Contact the shuttle with racquet extended, never close to the body for more control.
    Net corner footwork & your body's forward momentum is good enough to get the shuttle over the net when you catch the shuttle at or close to net level.
    No swings.
    As the shuttle is contacted, adjust the angle of the racquet head according to how far away from the net & how high you're catching the shuttle.
    Initial contact should be with the shuttle cork & not any other part of the shuttle - if the shuttle is cut by the opponent and is tumbling on your side, either wait for the shuttle to stop tumbling or time the swing to hit the shuttle during mid-tumble when the cork is pointing to the contact point (floor, usually).


    This was what I was taught by my couch. Of course she also tried to teach me "around the head reverse cut drop," but alas, my severely limited abilities go only so far.

    Hope it helps.
     

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