Hello everyone, this is my first post on this forums, and from what I see it is a very helpful and intelligent one, so joining seemed like a very viable option. But let's start talking. I am 6'1", and I'm in Highschool, so I'm slightly larger than most of my opponents. I'm a Freshman and I've been placed in the JV1 Singles 1 placement on the school ladder. I had aimed for JV2 Singles because I knew my limits, but the original JV1 player left for Varsity. I am now stuck in a very awkward situation because my skills are not up to par. Here's a quick list of what I have personally noticed I have been doing wrong. Reacting Slowly - I will look at the shuttle, for some reason, and while I generally hit it at the right time, this tends to be my downfall whenever it is to my backhand. Footwork - To put it bluntly, I'm slow. Not extremely, but in the world of badminton, I am like a snail next to a cat. I have the habit of watching my shot, instead of returning to the center of the court, and I also realize that many a times, I move awkwardly when going to the back of the court (Backhand side generally, I'm right handed). Serves - My backhand serves are god awful. They're always too high, and as much as I try to adjust slightly, it is either killed immediately, or I end up hitting the net. Forehand on the other hand (awkward lol) is not high enough. It tends to arch, but not straight up. It's weak, because I'm not that great at hitting the "sweet-spot" and I find that they just smash on me, or place a smart drop. Dropping - Either I drop too high or it's just not a smart drop. Many a times I find myself catching the shuttle when it's near the ground, instead of high up at the net. Well yeah that's basically it. Our coach focus's very much on foot work (shuttle-runs) but our match is in one week and I have much to improve on. Thank you for everyone who reads through this and decides to help! ~Chris
Experience and practice will help you in terms of serves and drops. Try practicing at school when you have time. The reason you look at the shuttle then react is because you might not be familiar with the speed. The more that you are able to look at the bird the more you know where it is going to land. That just takes a bit of experience to adjust quickly. When you look at the birdie just remember and remind yourself quickly, to move to the place where you want to hit the bird at. Perhaps the jump from JV2 to JV1 may have increases the level of badminton for you and you might a bit feel scared. Psychologically, if you doubt yourself you will most likely cause a few errors like hitting too high with low serves. Stay calm and play like you are in your relaxed place ,but not too relaxed or you might fall asleep =p.
I suggest try to watched this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSFgawK72E4 (try to find a video with this coach in it, he is very helpful) also this one: http://www.youtube.com/user/matrix2596#p/u and I think your coach is right, footwork is essential it doesn't really matter how good your technique, but if you cannot reach the shuttle or cannot get a good position, you will not do a good shot I think the rest is about practice, especially your serve
you won't be able to perfect all your errors in one week. However, you can do some adjustments that will help you a great deal. One thing I find to be EXTREMELY important in singles, is the length of your shots. If you keep your clears, lifts and long serves as close to the opponents baseline as possible, your opponent won't get any good opportunities and if he loses even a bit of concentration he will return the shuttle to short giving you the opportunity to attack. Often when I feel like I am missing a lot, when I feel like I'm getting tricked by my opponent all the time etc., it's actually my clears and lifts that are too short. Also, whenever I lose concentration in a game, my clears and lifts tend to be short, which makes me lose points more easily. I don't know your playing style really, and it's hard to help someone when you're unsure about they're level and style. If you upload a video of you playing, I think you will be able to get much better help from everyone here
Gunstaff is right. The main prob with most players in singles is the length of the clear or lift. Even when u think they are fine, they cud be a meter short!!! When u lift it back, look at the opponents feet and their back foot should be around the back line, that wil show you that yes they are good length or ask a friend to watch and see where ur clears are landing. If you can get them on back line, everything gets so much easier. Their smashes are easier to return, your drop shots are harder for them to get, their drop shots are easier to hit back. Jus makes the game so much easier
Thanks for the links! Yeah I went over them and they do look very helpful. I will be going to play lots of badminton over the weekend and practice, thanks for your help! ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ This was very helpful. When I play I swap between plastic and feather birdies, which in hindsight is a terrible idea... It messes up my timing. I'll be sticking with plastic only from now on since it is what highschools use. Yeah, I know for sure it's a psychological factor which makes me feel scared, because what happened was I played JV1 players from other schools and lost... Thanks for this, I am very competitive I notice and tend to get worked up, so I'll work on calming down. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* I'll be honest this was a great post but what was mentioned isn't something I really paid attention to. I'll pay more attention to it anyway, and implement your tips to see if I get a better grasp at singles. Thanks! I might bring a video camera with me next time I go play, hopefully you can analyze it for me then! ~*~*~*~*~*~~* This is interesting. Again it isn't something I really paid attention to when I played but will definitely keep in mind next time I do. Thanks for the post, I'll try correcting my play style as much as I can. ~chris Thanks everyone!
