You can hit the shuttle: you're not too bad but need that extra bit of help to improve. These lessons are based around improving your technique, to get you hitting the shuttle harder, sweeter, more accurately and more consistently.  Here's how to play like the pros:

Lesson 1 : Shot Technique

• Forearm Technique
• Singles Service
• Doubles Service
• Forehand
• Backhand
• Smashing
• Drop Shots

Lesson 2 : Court Technique

• Getting around the court
• Exercises

Lesson 3 : Shot Placement

• Shot Selection
• Long Rallying
• Short Rallying
• Timing

Points to remember

	1. Hold the racket in the indicated position, with the correct hand grip.
	2. Pull the racket back in the direction of the arrow, turning your forearm as you do so.  You should now be able to see the underside of your forearm.  You should also be able to feel the side muscles in your forearm tightening.
	3. Quickly swing the racket in the opposite direction.  This is the primary action you should use.
	4. Here's an animation of the whole sequence:
	5. Here it is demonstrated for hitting an overhead shot (the most-played shot in badminton, unlike other racket sports which are primarily underarm swings)  Note the angle of the elbow.

When using the forearm-technique for overhead shots, you should lead with your elbow (ie. as you turn your body to hit the shot, your racket-elbow comes up, followed by your forearm turn).  Your arm will swing forward and your body will follow-through for maximum power transfer.

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Singles Service:

By now you can probably serve the shuttle fairly well, but can you consistently get it to land between the two back tramlines?  To take advantage of your hard-earned serve and to put pressure on your opposing player, you need to serve high and long.  The only way to consistently achieve this is practice.  Get hold of 10-20 old feather shuttles (you can find them discarded at the badminton hall, or you'll have your own) and try to get at least 15 out of 20 into the back.  If that's too easy, put a bucket between the tramlines and try to get as many as possible to land inside it.  If you get half in you're doing great.

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The doubles service game requires you to serve short, and accurately.  To practice this one, get 20 shuttle and another person on the other side.  Have the other person stand as close as is allowed (almost on the front service line) and try to hit your serves down.  You will need to keep your serves very low on the net, but long enough to reach the service line.  You want to get your racket as high as possible without breaking the rules  For extra height, you can get on your tip-toes.  Again, practice is the key for consistency here.

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Forehand:

To hit it harder, you need to get behind the shuttle, and move your body hard into the shot.  Tennis players demonstrate it well when they serve.  Analysing the physics of the game, to hit the shuttle further and more quickly you need to get the racket head moving as fast as possible.  Regard the racket as being part of your arm.  With your shoulder as the pivot point, the point of contact (racket head) has a fairly long extension from the pivot point.  Thus, by moving your shoulder faster the racket head will move a magnitude of times faster (the longer your arms, the better!).

Denmark's Rasmussen can hit it pretty hard Here he demonstrates a powerful forearm turn		Lee D.S. of Korea is no slouch, either

You should be able to hit the shuttle from one end of the court to the other (and not just with a fast shuttle!)  You might like to try hitting it from a metre of so further back - the added power will be invaluable when you're under pressure, or playing with a particularly slow shuttle, or on a cold day.

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Backhand:

The best way to play the backhand, is not to play it at all.  Use your speed to play overhead shots 'around the head', that is, to move as far to the backhand side of the court and play a forehand shot.  It'll help you to avoid getting into trouble if you can't clear with your backhand.  Bend your back! If you can't get around (either because it is practically impossible or undesirable), the technique to use is identical to the forearm technique, only in reverse.  Most people have no problems executing this on shots at shoulder level or lower, but many have difficulty when the shot is above their head.  This is described in the expert tutorial. To gain extra power in your backhand shots, first get into position by turning your back to the net.  Then spin around, hitting the shuttle flat down the line.  Always use the weight of your body to maximise power transfer.
		Mia Audina of the Netherlands intelligently plays around the head

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Smashing:

		Smashing is a low percentage shot that should only really be attempted if your opponent has hit a weak shot to the middle of the court.   The action is essentially the same as for forehand clearing shots.  Turning your body and moving into the shot is more important here to get that additional bit of power.  Jump for extra height, to achieve the steepest possible angle on the shuttle. Aiming the smash is important - you are most vulnerable right after smashing.  You'll be off balance and out of position after having put everything into your shot  The best place to aim is down the sides, where your opponent will have to stretch to reach.  However, this is low percentage as you can easily hit it out.  To increase your chances aim at your opponent's non-racket hand, or at their body to put them out of balance.  Give them as little space as possible.
Korean Ha Tae Kwon hits a mean jumping forehand smash

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Drop shots:

There are two types of dropshot you can attempt: the fast drop and the slow drop.  First we'll discuss the slow drop, which is likely to be the type of drop you've been doing.  Slow drops should be hit to land as close to the net as possible.  The blue areas of the diagram show where to aim for. You need to hit the shuttle softly, but using the same action as for normal overhead clears or smashes.  Again, practice will get you hitting the spot consistently.

A well-placed fast drop is usually more effective than a well-placed slow drop.  This is because your opponent has much less time to get to the drop, putting them under pressure.  Fast drops can be difficult to execute, as you're effectively hitting a gentle smash.  Try to get up as high as possible - the higher you get the steeper the angle you can get.  The green areas of the diagram indicate where to aim for.

Be warned that doing a drop shot from the back of the court, fast or slow, can get you into a lot of trouble.  If you're not accurate, your opponent can easily drop it back over the net putting you under pressure.  As a general rule, don't drop diagonally across the court.  It's the furthest distance to run!

Often you'll be forced to drop because you're under pressure, or in a position where you can't clear it.  In this case, use your peripheral vision to see where your opponent is, and try to keep it away from them.  If that's not possible, hit a slow floating drop - that way you'll have time to position yourself for the return.

Drop shots are easy to practice - all you need is someone at the front hitting the shuttle up for you while you run them left and right.  You'll know if your accuracy is good simply by observation.

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Getting around the court:

The game of badminton, unlike other racket sports, consists mostly of forward and backward movement.  You need to be able to cover all four corners of the court, taking the fewest possible steps.

From the middle of the court, or the 'base' (area where you should return to after each shot), side-slip toward the front corners.  When you're close to the corner, stretch out with your leg (right leg for right-handed players, vice versa for left-handers) and reach out with your arm.  Try to keep your back leg as close to the middle of the court as possible.  After playing the shot, bounce back towards the middle.

To get to the back corners, again side-slip.  Right-handed players will lead the side-slip with their right leg, for both forehand and backhand corners.  The idea is to get into the side-on position before the shuttle arrives, and to force you to play overhead backhand shots around the head.

The footprints show where you should place your left (hollow) and right (filled) feet.  This is for a right-handed players point of view, where you lead with the right foot.  Left- handed players take a mirror image. The red circle indicates the base, or area which you should return to after playing any shot. Remember: you should side-slip to each corner, and jog back to the base area.

See the Expert page for help on how to get around the court in doubles and mixed doubles.

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Exercises:

You also need both agility and speed to get around the court quickly.  Speed drills will help improve your court speed.  Run back and forth across the width of court as many times as you can in 1 minute intervals, stretching out to touch the line with your fingertips.

If you have access to a court, the best exercise is to get on it with a racket.  Practice side-slipping to each corner, returning to the middle each time.  Mix it up.  Have someone stand on the front T bar of your side of the court, pointing at random to each corner.

Might be a good idea to stretch before you start playing...

It's also important to warm up.  Stretch your calves and groin.  You'll be reaching out for shots, and the last thing you want is to pull a muscle (especially if you pull your groin, you'll be walking around like a cowboy with a broken saddle). Do some stretches on your arms, especially your shoulder and forearm.  Get someone to give you a gentle hit-up before you start the game.

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If you want to get the upper-hand, analyse what your opponent does.  If you notice they always clear twice then drop, you'll be prepared.  Or you might notice they return backhand smashes poorly, slow to the net, etc.  Play to your strengths and their weaknesses.

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The advantage of playing this game is the low risk.  However, you are not really controlling the outcome of the game, instead relying on your opponent to make the mistake.

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The advantage of this type of game is that you control the pace, and possibly the outcome.  However, if your opponent is able to return your low percentage shots you will tire more quickly, as you'll have to do a lot more running.

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Improvement of timing will come with experience and practice.  One way to tell whether you're hitting the sweet spot is to check the wear on your strings - they should be fraying the most around the center of the rackethead.

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