#seagames2019

Court dimensions

The badminton court is 13.4m long and 6.1m wide. For singles the court is marked 5.18m wide. The lines marking out the court are easily distinguishable and coloured white or yellow. The lines are 40mm wide. A court may be marked out for singles only. The back boundary lines also become the long service lines and the posts or the strips of material representing them are placed on the side lines.

The diagonal full length of the full court is 14.366m.

Posts

The posts are 1.55m high from the surface of the court and remain vertical when the net is strained. The posts are placed on the double side lines irrespective of whether singles or doubles is played. The posts or supports must not extend into the court beyond the side lines. Where it is not practicable to have posts on the side lines, some method can be used to indicate the position of the side lines where they pass under the net, eg by the use of thin posts or strips of material 40mm wide, fixed to the side lines and rising vertically to the net cord.

Net

The net is 760mm in depth and a minimum of 6.1m wide. The top of the net from the surface of the court is 1.524m at the centre of the court and 1.55m over the side lines for doubles. There must be no gaps between the ends of the net and the posts. If necessary, the full depth of the net at the ends is tied to the posts.

Equipment

Badminton Racket

Modern Badminton Rackets are light in weight and don’t weigh more than 100 grams. The frame of the Racket can be made of common metals like steel or aluminum. Sometimes rackets are made of alloys, tough carbon fiber, ceramic, or boron. Its length does not exceed 680mm and width does not exceed 230 mm.

Shuttlecock

Sixteen feathers fixed in a cork base enveloped in a thin leather sheet make a shuttlecock. Interestingly, the best Badminton Shuttlecocks are made from feathers from the wing of a goose. The shuttle weighs between 4.74 to 5.50 grams.

Badminton Shoes

A good pair of Badminton Shoes provide good grip, cushioning and some flexibility at the forefoot.

Badminton Accessories

The commonly used Badminton Accessories are Grip, Badminton Clothes, Socks, Wrist Band and Head Band.

Grip

A grip made of cloth or synthetic fiber absorbs sweat and provides you a drier feel.

Badminton Clothes

Comfortable T-shirts and shorts, that don’t hinder your movement are ideal to play Badminton. A cotton round-neck or a collar t-shirts with a pair of light shorts are usually preferred.

Socks

Wear a pair of thick cotton socks as they help to absorb sweat. They also prevent your feet from slipping inside your shoes. Avoid wearing Nylon socks that don’t absorb sweat.

Wrist Band

If you perspire a lot, you may consider getting a wrist band that prevents your sweat from flowing to your racket handle.

Head Band

Wear a Head Band if you wear spectacles. It prevents your lenses from getting wet and also stops the sweat and hair from getting into your eyes while playing.

Basic Skills

Grip

The right grip in holding the racket is really important to achieve control on shots while avoiding the chances of a wrist injury. A proper grip will allow you to play both backhand and forehand strokes effortlessly.

Stance

The stance is how you stand while playing badminton, both in between a rally and before the serve. A stable and correct stance will bring a huge change in the results due to easier movement.

Footwork

Badminton is played on a court with limited space, and the athletes have to take care of the same while playing. Footwork plays a huge role in helping with an effective and organised movement on the court. In fact, some coaches even raise footwork to prime importance over other skills.

Serve

Service is among the most basic skill that you need to master in Badminton. Also, you should ensure to make a legal service otherwise it might lead to penalty points.

Drop Shot

Badminton Drop Shots are delicate badminton shots that can win you points that aim at scoring points in deception. Played with both backhand and forehand, these are used to move the opponent to the frontcourt. This creates space in the midcourt and backcourt for you to exploit. There are slow and fast drop shots, played judging the situation.

Clear or Lob

The lob shot in Badminton can be imagined as a shot with an inverted ‘U’ trajectory. It is normally played from the forecourt with an aim to lift or ‘lob’ the shuttle over the opponent. The idea is to land it as near to the baseline as it is, at an angle that is impossible to clear. This is similar to the drop in challenging the opponent with sudden motion backwards this time. It can also be executed by both backhand and forehand. This generally results in the creation of space in the front and midcourt, opening plenty of opportunities.

Technical and Tactical Skills

Technical Skills

The Ready Stance - it is a position in badminton wherein the right stance is readied by the player in order to minimize the amount of movements that would be needed in order to hit the shuttlecock Forehand and Backhand Grip - these are the two basic grips that new players must familiarize themselves with. By doing either of these, it would be much easier for players to control their shots Footwork - it is a necessary skill in order to play badminton. A proper foot walk would help in mastering the sports Strokes - initially, there are four strokes that the player can use.   Underarm Backhand Serve - it is a type of serve that beginners can use

Tactical Skills

Applying pressure on hitting the shuttlecock Position yourself in the central base It would be easier to hit the shuttlecock on the corners of the court Deceive your opponents during singles match

Rules of the Game

Rules

A player must wait until his opponent is ready before serving. If the opponent attempts a return then he is ruled having been ready. The feet of both players must remain in a stationary position until the serve is made. Your feet can not be touching the line at this time. It is not a fault if you miss the shuttle while serving. The shuttle cannot be caught and slung with the racket. A player cannot hold his racket near the net to ward off a downward stroke by his opponent or to interfere with his racket.

Faults

The shuttle, at the instant of being hit is higher than the servers waist or the head of the racket is higher than the servers racket hand. The shuttle does not land in the correct service court. The server's feet are not in the service court or if the feet of the receiver are not in the court diagonally opposite the server. The server steps forward as he/she serves. Any player balking or feinting his opponent before serve or during serve. A serve or shot that lands outside the court boundaries, passes under or through the net, touches any other obstructions or a players body or clothing. The boundary and service lines are considered in play. The shuttle in play is struck before it crosses the net to the striker's side of the net. You may follow through over the net. A player touching the net or its supports with his body or racket while the shuttle is in play. Hitting the shuttle twice in succession by a player or team.

Scoring System

A match consists of the best of 3 games of 21 points. Every time there is a serve – there is a point scored. The side winning a rally adds a point to its score. At 20 all, the side which gains a 2 point lead first, wins that game. At 29 all, the side scoring the 30th point, wins that game. The side winning a game serves first in the next game.

Interval and Change of Ends

A 1 minute interval between each game is allowed. In the third game, players change ends when the leading score reaches 11 points.

Officiating the Game

The officials are the judges responsible to ensure a fair badminton game is being played. They consists of:

Umpire: 

The ‘main judge’ for the particular badminton game. He/she has the power to overrule any decisions made by the service judge or line judges. The umpire is the person ensuring that the badminton game is run smoothly and prevent any players from delaying the game play.

Whenever a player requests to change the shuttle, the umpire will need to approve that the change could be made.

The umpire also looks out for faults committed around the net area such as whether a player touched the net when returning the shuttle.

Besides, the umpire is responsible to make a ‘fault’ call when the shuttle touches the player or the players’ attires except for the badminton racket. In badminton, it will be a fault/foul to a player if the shuttle touches any part of that player’s body or attire.

Service Judge: 

The service judge is responsible in making a ‘service fault’ call and to provide shuttles to the players.

Line Judges: 

Line judges sit beside the badminton court (right in front of every in/out lines) to determine whether the shuttle is inside or outside the boundaries of the court.

Their calls are usually very subjective and are often controversial.

Analysis

A seamlessly flawless victory for the Thailand’s Men Badminton Team has emerged in the 2019 Sea Games against the Philippines. It was an intense battleground fought till the end that had shocked the arena throughout the period of the game. Although the Filipino lost, he still showed determination and key perseverance that had paved way for him to reach that far. Despite such event, it has led both teams to pursue more on the strife of becoming better players that would soon reach the heights of endless possibilities. Overall, it was a fair and just game that showed great precision in officiating the game and calling calls, and the totality of the set-up has showed professionalism all throughout.

VIDEO LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gTm2dbteyt4

References: 

Department of  Local Government, Sport, and Cultural Industries. (n.d.). Badminton. Retrieved  from www.dlgsc.wa.gov.au:  https://www.dlgsc.wa.gov.au/sport-and-recreation/sports-dimensions-guide/badminton#:~:text=The%20badminton%20court%20is%2013.4,The%20lines%20are%2040mm%20wide.

Heda, R. (2019,  July 5). 7 basic badminton skills you can learn without coaching.  Retrieved from Kreedon.com: https://www.kreedon.com/basic-badminton-skills/

MST. (n.d.). Badminton  Rules. Retrieved from web.mst.edu:  https://web.mst.edu/~ima/rules/Badmintonrules.html

Philippines vs Thailand Badminton Men's Singles Quarterfinals Sea Games 2019

 The men’s Single Quarterfinals Sea Games 2019 was held at Muntinlupa Sports Complex, Metro Manila. The event had a court dimension of 13.4 meters long and 6.1 meters wide, however for the single event the court was marked 5.18 meters wide. The Rules of the game were:

1.     A player must wait until his opponent is ready before serving. If the opponent attempts a return then he is ruled having been ready.

2.     The feet of both players must remain in a stationary position until the serve is made. Your feet can not be touching the line at this time.

3.     It is not a fault if you miss the shuttle while serving.

4.     The shuttle cannot be caught and slung with the racket.

5.     A player cannot hold his racket near the net to ward off a downward stroke by his opponent or to interfere with his racket.

The said event was held with their officiating officials, the Umpire who is the main judge who has the power to overrule the decisions made by the line judges. The service judge who provides shuttles to the players and call out “service faults” and lastly the line judges to determine if the shuttle was in or out. The equipment needed for the sport is a shuttle cock and a racket. The basic skills needed for the players are the grip, serve, footwork, stance and most importantly the stroke. From the video I saw, it has been observed that Philippines and India have various strategies and skills shows. Starting off with the Philippines, the player for the Philippines somehow lack on footwork and needed more focus. His forehand and backhand lobs were either too strong cause an out or lacked strength that couldn’t reach the opponent’s side. However, his smashes were an advantage at some point giving him a few scores. Moving on to the Thailand player, he was very quick, his shots were more on smashes ad dropshots, the dropshots gave him an advantage as the Philippine player sometimes was not able to hit the shuttle, his smashes also gave him lots of points because the Philippine player gets distracted somehow making him lose the point. The tactical skills both teams had been similar, they had applied lots of pressure to the shuttle, and were mostly hitting the shuttle from sides of the court. However, despite similarities there too are differences. Team Thailand was more on staying stance on the central base but creating a distraction with his dropshots on the sides, on the other hand, team Philippines stayed on the left side of the base and were focused more on smashes and similar dropshots but were sometimes a 50-50 due to the lack or excessive force placed upon the shuttle. But despite his lack or excessive force on his shots, I couldn’t help but notice how also good he may be at defending the smashes given by Thailand especially the backhand Lob and smash that he had performed. Consequently, Team Thailand won the game with a score of 21-21 and the Philippines had lost, but never the less it was a good and thrilling game indeed.

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