what is the ideal height for badminton? I am a fully grow adult at 5ft 7" and if I had a badminton wish, I wish I was 5 9". With two extra inches I feel my smash is better because of bigger swing, I able to reach drop shot that I usually clip it with the top of the racquet rim. Does the extra height give a player an extras advantage or do they lose alot of quickness? Both Gong and Hendrawan is very short, she is 5ft 4'' and he is 5ft 7" but they both a world class players. Does height equal advantage? some info: Sun Jun and Xia 5ft 10" Taufik Hidayat - 5ft 9" Peter Gate and Ji - 6ft 0" Both Poul Eric Larson and Martin Frost have a long career, they both over 6ft, can a player like Taufik Hidayat who status is much shorter play until he is 30?
RE: what is the ideal height for badminton? I think the fact that height is uninmportant is one of the great things about badminton and why it should be recognized as a great sport. A great player can be anything from 5ft 5" to 6ft 5". Having short limbs means you can position your feet quickly and react to shots more quickly. Also shorter players are often more flexible and can reach very well. Gong can defend a down-the-line smash by just streching from her base with a very wide stance. I tried the same movement and I can only just do it (I'm 6ft). I often play with Julia Mann the English number one and she's 5ft 6" and she can reach my smash and attacking clears no problem (not all the time though..he..he). Being tall gives the advantage of leverage on the smash and reaching high shots earlier. But reaching shots near to the ground is more difficult. I don't think Yang Yang was very tall...but...one jump from base to the forehand corner.....and bang..(let's face it he was probably the best ever in terms of consistency) In terms of body type weight affects play more than height. Good players don't usually have heavy frames or too much muscle but of course they have enough of the right type of muscle for explosive speed and endurance. I wonder what type of track athletes would make the best players. Maybe 800m runners. Any ideas ?
RE: what is the ideal height for badminton? good topic but it's not that clear cut. I can write a thesis on this subject, it's that comprehensive. Height is just one of many important parameters to consider about the physics of badminton but not the most important one. I have ponder this question too since i started playing badminton many moons ago. I agreed with Paul that taller players have better reach but their back suffers more stress from repetitive cycles of reaching low and then high shots. In short, there are advantages and disadvantage being tall badminton players. One have to adjust to their game plan accordingly.
RE: what is the ideal height for badminton? I agree that there is advantage and disadvantage being short or tall but I still I think there is a ideal height for this sport. I think Taufik Hidayat has the perfect height at 5ft 9" because he still have a very good angle smash with out a full jump and is extremely quick on the court. Don't you guys think (Paul and cooler) if you guys lose or gain couple inches you guys would be better player?
RE: what is the ideal height for badminton? I wouldn't want to be shorter but if my legs were a bit shoter and my feet not so big (12US) then I'd be faster shuffling around the court. If I had to pick an optimum height range 5ft 9" to 6ft 1" is best.Does anybody think a player has acheived physical perfection for badminton ? How about Liem Swie King or maybe Zhao? Xie looks incredibly strong but his legs look almost too heavy.
RE: what is the ideal height for badminton? I would think Zhao would be a good contender. But notable exceptions are Yap Kim Hock, Ardy Wiranata, Ong Ewe Hock. Perhaps being taller helps but for me, better footwork and better technique would be my preference.
Hi guys this thought just came in to my head - maybe it's a bit daft but i'll satisfy my curiousity anyway. Is it more advantageous to be tall or short in singles? When i started to think about this i thought height was a major advantage, the long reach and steeper smashes are bound to be match winning characteristics but then while watching my coach who is less than 5 ft 6 high i occured to me that he is much faster round the court and would also have longer to get under the shuttle since it has to fall further to reach him. This height certainly is of some benefit but what do you guy's think? Neil
Height has its advantages , so does being compact. Look at Burgess, he certainly uses his height to a great advantage and many asian players have great difficulty playing tall Europenas because they simply cannot practice against any tall players. Amongst English mens singles, from junior to senior we tend to see taller than average players at the top. Looking at the world scene shorter asian players still dominate.
Shorter players tend to move quite fast because they have to learn footwork from an early age. That's probably why your coach is faster. Also you get a lower center of gravity so your balance is better. Another advantage is that it's more difficult to smash or drive into the body of a shorter player. Shorter players have naturally good doubles defence because of this. Height has more advantage in european countries because the skills focus is biased towards taller players. Not sure whether this is the case in Asian Countries. I think there are advantages and disadvantages to both so the best thing is to be average
Technically, "technicaly" shorter players tend to be faster than taller players because the distance between their body parts are closer to their brain (distance wise) so electrical impulses can travel a shorter distance to and fro the brain (given that both players have the same reflex rate ei. 150 cm/s i forgot the actual figures...) If you do a reflex test this tends to be the results However, I find it IMPOSSIBLE to play taller players when they're standing up front... so... dont know, it might be a physchological effect tho since they are so big they giv u pressure when playing Just a thought
hmmm seems that there are advantages on both sides. tall players stood at the front should, if they're fast enuf, be able to cut out almost anything that is going past them and if they don't cut it out the lift is high and they have plenty of time to get behind it and smack it. smaller players are defensive players but not by choice obviousley they have to work very hard to win points by stamina and strong defense and tactical play Neil
Exactly UKp, completely agree with you here. Extreme in either directions are never good. Now comes the question, what is average and ideal height for badminton players then?
I can see ur point. However, I believe proper high clear and drives that "into" their body, may help u out. High clear can force them to get back (if their partner are on the exactly opposit side), "body drive" can give tall & big players trouble to move their arm back for defense. Also, if u have a weapon in drop shot, try to create some trouble for them on dropping to their backhand side. However, if they are also control type players, be careful, they have advantage on "reaching".
For some reason, i've noticed that when playing doubles, i play better at the front while the shorter person plays at the back. I always though this was weird because it's"supposed" to be the other way around. Now i see its not just with me.
