Hi, New to badminton, have been playing for 2-3 months on average twice a week. Playing with the cheapest racket I could find in sports direct here in the UK. Outside of badminton I'm generally quite active and fit if that has any bearing on the answers to below. 1) Is it worth investing in a better racket or when is the right time for this? It's probably more psychological at this moment thinking the racket is holding me back! 2) If I should invest in one, what is a good all round racket for a beginner playing singles? Thanks in advance!
The racket is not holding you back. If you have money to spend on badminton, invest in good shoes and coaching!
many times its psycological thinking we would perform like a pro when using high end expensive pro used racket. High end racket tend to be less forgiving, so lack in power & technique will punish you even more. As for when, try ask yourself this one. Can you feel the different between 2 different racket on your hand? Feel the stiffness, feel the head heavyness, or any other. If you cant then why bother an expensive one. You can get 10 cheap racket, break it all you want while training & its fine, rather than had 1 expensive one, you broke it, & cry for it. Like speCulatius say, if you really had some money, get a coach instead. It would give much more benefit in long term than just an expensive racket. wait until you had good basic tech & you found out your games characteristic. Ofcourse a coach would be able to guide you better when you already hone your skill.
Here in India yonex Carbonex series racquets are pretty balanced, durable & relatively cheap IMHO. You can also go for yonex Arcsaber series if you want to go higher in price. My friends suggest Apacs racquet for light and cheap rather than Lining. But I haven't played with them much. But as others have mentioned coaching will get you the highest & fastest gains. Cheers.
If he is using the cheapest racket from Sports Direct it probably is holding hime back! It will be little more than a kid's toy. I'd definitely upgrade to a recognised brand/model for £50 or £60 to go along with shoes and coaching.
Right, it would be good to know if OP has a steel racket, or the cheapest carbon racket. In the second case it should be fine to play with for the first year. Just consider getting a proper string job! @Ali1786 Maybe you can post a picture of what you have right now?
Even if it's a steel racket with a deformed head that was thrown at him, it's not holding him back after 2-3 months of playing. Playing. Not training.
Appreciate the help guys. Coaching would obviously help, but seems a bit of an overkill for someone just playing recreationally at the moment. A good pair of shoes are on the list. @intrepid it's this one, I doubt it's carbon. https://www.sportsdirect.com/wilson-fierce-90-badminton-racket-721012#colcode=72101244 @drew tze en wrist power I'd probably say above average for a beginner. In terms of player I doubt I've learnt enough to favour a particular style but only play singles at the moment and do sometimes struggle getting the height/distance esp if reaching a bit for them.
Wow only ten pounds! I would say invest in shoes and a decent non-external t joint racket that is at decent price. Also do you know how to grip your racket correctly? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
It's not, especially at the beginning to get some basics down. Just like coaching, these are not only to feel and play better, but mostly to reduce the risk of injuries. About the racket, you can get an Adidas Spieler A09.1, it's an amazing racket for that price (and even if it was more expensive). No matter which racket you get, make sure to get a decent stringjob.
