ABOUT BADMINTON

Badminton is a sport that traces its origins to the English game of battledore and shuttlecock. In this article, we give you introductory insights to the game.

Essentially a racquet sport, the game of badminton involves two opposing players (in a singles game) or two pairs of players (in a doubles game) hitting a shuttlecock with their respective racquets in a pre defined playing arena referred to as a court, which is divided into two halves by a net in between. Points are scored when the shuttlecock hits the ground, and that is when an ongoing rally between the players comes to an end. To explain, the idea is to keep hitting the shuttlecock back and forth, with each player on either side being allowed to hit the shuttlecock only once. It is the endeavor of the players to ensure that the shuttlecock does not strike the net while they are hitting it towards their opponent.    

The game is largely an indoor sport, primarily because the flight of the shuttlecock is largely affected by wind. Therefore all professional badminton, including in the Olympics where it debuted in 1992, is played indoors. Amateur badminton players, especially those who play it just to keep themselves fit, or as a recreation, may nonetheless choose to play it outdoors.  

Professional badminton tends to be played in five different kinds of events – men’s singles, women’s singles, men’s doubles, women’s doubles and mixed doubles. The last mentioned has a man and a woman each on either side, playing against the other.  

The game traces its history to the English game of battledore and shuttlecock which was improvised by English officers stationed in then British India. The extent to which the game was played there, led to the game being called as Poona, after a garrison town in India where the game was very popularly played. Finally, when those same officers left India to go back to England, they took the game with them. Eventually, the game got its name as we know it today, from the Badminton House in Gloucestershire where the Duke of Beaufort organized a tournament of sorts for the game. Thereon, the game itself started to be referred to as ‘ The Game of Badminton’. 

The game is governed by the Badminton World Federation which was first established in 1934 as The International Badminton Federation (IBF). Countries dominating the sport in terms of excellence, largely include the South East Asian nations such as Indonesia and Malaysia. In Europe, Denmark has produced some great stalwarts of the game. Other countries which have also excelled in the sport include India, China, and South Korea. 

Each game is played up to a score of 21 points; whichever side gets to that score wins the game. A single match would comprise of three such games.  

The playing arena is a 44 feet (length) by 17 feet (width) rectangular court. In a doubles game, the width is increased to 20 feet. A net, 5 feet 1 inches in height at the edges and exactly 5 feet at the center, separates the two sides of the court.  

The basic equipment for playing badminton include racquets, which are light weight, usually made of diverse carbon fiber composites. The area of the racquet used to hit the shuttlecock comprises of numerous thick strings intermeshing through the center. The shuttlecock comprises of a cork base with sixteen overlapping feathers in a conical shape; often the feathers are replaced by a plastic skirting. 

Strokes that you use to hit the shuttlecock include both backhand and forehand. These two strokes alone could have hundreds of different styles in which you play them. 

Finally, it all boils down to immense amount of practice that you require to master the game, along with a lot of agility and superb all round fitness and stamina.