Flick serve rule?

**ryts100** · 12-25-2010, 11:54 PM

Today I was playing against my friend who is on the Bintang team. Since I'm planning on playing doubles when I join my high school team, I was practicing doing backhand serves. I did a flick serve by holding the shuttle in my left hand by the "feathers"(we use plastic birdies), then drawing back my racket, hitting the shuttle, and doing a backswing. My friend says this is illegal, because you aren't allowed to do a backswing on a (backhand?) serve. Can someone tell me if this is true or not?

**canti** · 12-26-2010, 12:35 AM

"9.1.7 the movement of the server's racket shall continue forwards from the start of the service (Law 9.2) until the service is delivered (Law 9.3);"

its perfectly legal to pull back your racket and then push forward with the flick maybe you were gesturing too much with your pull back

**ryts100** · 12-26-2010, 01:03 AM

Originally Posted by canti

"9.1.7 the movement of the server's racket shall continue forwards from the start of the service (Law 9.2) until the service is delivered (Law 9.3);"

its perfectly legal to pull back your racket and then push forward with the flick maybe you were gesturing too much with your pull back

Could you clarify about the gesturing too much part? What I was doing was pulling back so my hand is close to my stomach/chest(under my ribs of course), then going towards the shuttle, flick, and follow through. Is that too much movement?

**canti** · 12-26-2010, 01:06 AM

if there is no extra motion except the swing aka the pull back and the push then you are fine. Some players tend to shake their racket back and forth before a serve thats what i meant by gesturing too much.

**ryts100** · 12-26-2010, 01:08 AM

Originally Posted by canti

if there is no extra motion except the swing aka the pull back and the push then you are fine. Some players tend to shake their racket back and forth before a serve thats what i meant by gesturing too much.

What about the follow through? After the flick my racket kept going in the same direction. Am I supposed to stop the motion after I hit the shuttle, or can I keep going?

**taneepak** · 12-26-2010, 01:49 AM

A backhand flick serve requires more back swing with the wrist pronated for deception. This is perfectly legal so long as the movement is backwards for the back swing and then forward movement for the shuttle contact, provided it is not above the waist.
So long as the forward movement part is not arrested, stopped, or reversed and then moved forward it is legal. The follow through is irrelevant.
The problem with the backhand flick serve is the way you hold the racket. Asian players usually hold the racket more towards horizontally for better leverage and deception but this risks it being faulted for serving above the waist. Holding the racket more vertically reduces the risk but this lacks leverage and deception that a more horizontal racket can deliver.

**Gollum** · 12-26-2010, 09:55 AM

Originally Posted by ryts100

What about the follow through? After the flick my racket kept going in the same direction. Am I supposed to stop the motion after I hit the shuttle, or can I keep going?

You can keep going.