Badminton/Footwork
In badminton, players often avoid running around the court in the traditional sense due to the court being relatively short. Instead, players perform a variation of fast moving steps in order to cover the entire court and all directions fast enough to reach the shuttle before it hits the ground.
There are no official rules for how to perform footwork but over time, players have developed their own guidelines for how to best move around the court.
Footwork is crucial as, if done correctly, it allows your body to be in balance while performing every stroke, which improves the stroke itself. Good footwork also offers you more stroke choices as you’ll often be able to reach the shuttle earlier in its trajectory. That usually leads to more aggressive stroke options and a higher chance of winning the rally.
For example, many skilled players avoid smashing unless their body is balanced and they are placed behind the shuttle as the chance of not executing it perfectly and hitting the net is too high. At the same time, fast footwork can also give you the chance to play an aggressive forehand shot (such as a smash) rather than being forced to use the backhand.
Effective footwork in badminton typically consists of the following items:
- Lunges
- Running steps
- Chasse steps
- China jump
- Scissor jump/kick
- Net jump
- Split steps