Win the front court
Ready when: The flat game and drives (a1) done.
What you are learning
To win the area near the net. If you reach the shuttle early, high and close to the net, your net shot falls so tight that the other player can only hit it up (a lift), and then you can attack. Disguise helps: do not show where you will hit.
Words on this card Shuttle, Rally, Back to the middle, Net shot, Lift, Feed, Service line, Fault, Front court
- Shuttle
- The "ball" in badminton: a cork with feathers or a plastic skirt. It flies fast, slows down quickly and falls almost straight down. A foam shuttle is softer and good for learning.
- Rally
- The shuttle going back and forth over the net until someone misses. One rally wins one point.
- Back to the middle
- The spot in the centre of your side. After every shot you go back there, so you can reach the next one.
- Net shot
- A soft shot played close to the net that just goes over and falls straight down on the other side.
- Lift
- A shot hit upward from low down near the net, so the shuttle goes high and deep to the back of the other side.
- Feed
- To throw or hit the shuttle to the player so they can practise one shot. The feeder is the person doing it.
- Service line
- The line near the net that a serve must pass. On the home strip it is 2 m from the rope.
- Fault
- A broken rule in a rally: into the net, out, a double hit or a net touch. The other side wins the point.
- Front court
- The part of the court near the net, and the part near the back line.
Set up
A net; a chalk box 1 m wide just behind the net on each side. A racket each, shuttles.
Weather: no wind
Show it first for the one teaching
- Stand near the net. As the shuttle comes, step in and meet it as high as you can, close to the top of the net.
- Keep the racket nearly still and brush the shuttle over, so it falls straight down.
- Then a second shot: the same start, but push it to the far corner instead.
Your part while they practise
Feed to the net from alternating sides, with no fixed pattern.
Step by step
- The player starts in the middle.
- You feed to the net, left or right.
- The player moves in, meets the shuttle early and high, and plays it tight over the net.
- After each shot the player goes back to the middle.
- 12 shuttles a round.
How much: 12 shuttles, 4 rounds 10 min a session 2 days a week
Say one thing Pick one line from "What you will see" for today and say only that.
The game: Net battle
A point for forcing the opponent to lift; the first to 10.
Who plays: the player against you, both in the front court only.
How to play, turn by turn
- Turns
- Both players stand between the net and the service line
- Start with a gentle net shot, and play net shots back and forth
- A rally ends when a player lifts the shuttle (hits it upward to get it back), or makes a fault
- Fair play
- The grown-up must play every shot to the same side.
- Points
- 1 point when your net shot forces the other player to lift. 1 point when the other player makes a fault.
- Fouls
- A point to the other player
- The shuttle goes past the service line
- Into the net
- A player touches the net
- Winning
- The first to 10 points.
- 4 points in a game for 1 star
- 7 points in a game for 2 stars
- 10 points in a game for 3 stars
Easier or harder
Feed on a set pattern.
Random feeds, less time to recover.
What you will see, and what to say
- the net shot rises above the tape
Brush the shuttle, do not push
A light touch under the shuttle, racket nearly still. - the player is slow to recover
Go back to the middle
Every shot ends with the return.
Self-check
7 of 10 net shots drop in the box.
Stop and get a coach when
A calf, knee or ankle twinge appears.
Fitness for this
Warm up first: how to warm up, at workonfitness.com. For strength and stretching, its exercise library shows each exercise step by step, with an easier version.
This card trains touch, deception.
awiseathlete.com/sports/badminton/badminton-a2