In this video we're going to explain where you should have your racket in the mid-court,
give you some tips on how to make sure you can keep it there,
and most importantly teach you how to dominate the mid-court from this position.
This is actually my favorite video we've prepared on the channel so far so i'm really excited for
you to watch the next few minutes and gain some badminton insight so let's get straight into it!
Now, we see so many players with their rackets nearly touching the ground whilst waiting for a
shot in the mid-court. You might not think this is you, but honestly just record yourself and
it might surprise you. From a low down position it takes more time to get your racket to the shuttle
because you have to lift your racket up and then play your shot rather than just already
being there. And there's no reason to not be in this position when your opponents are playing
the shuttle from below the height of the net as they obviously can't play a downward shot!
Now being in a higher position and also a neutral grip will allow you to improve your shots in many
ways which we'll explain during the rest of this video, and this is honestly one huge difference
between beginner to intermediate players and intermediate players to advanced players. Yes it is
so first we're going to try and get you used to keeping your racket up in the mid-court.
So wherever you're watching this from, take your racket arm and bring it directly out
in front of you and then bend it a little bit so that it's comfortable and then keep it here.
And we're doing this without a racket so you get used to the feeling.
Now keep it there for 10 more seconds - whilst you're there, point your finger out and press the
like button at the bottom of the video and then you should still have another seven seconds so go
down and press the subscribe button if you haven't already! Training and helping the channel in under
10 seconds! Now let's get back to the video... And you can lower your arm down now, but seriously
constantly having your arm out in front of you and in this ready position can help you so much.
I'm sure he won't mind me saying this, but Chris Adcock once said to me: imagine your arm
is over shark infested water and you can't drop it, otherwise you'll lose your arm and your racket.
Very random i know but sometimes silly things like this can actually really help to act as a reminder.
It's certainly stuck with me, especially when it's come from one of the best mid-court players in the world!
Now how exactly is having your racket up in this position going to help your game?
Well as we said earlier it's going to take less time to get to the shuttle from the starting
position so you're therefore earlier to your shot and being earlier to the shot opens you up to many
different possibilities. Firstly being in a good position like this is more likely to intimidate
your opponents because they know you're able to play a downward shot so they'll more likely move
backwards and this creates space for a soft shot in front of them. This soft shot can either be a
winner or force a weak reply, and secondly as well as playing this soft shot, you're able to play many
other shots much more effectively such as a drive that actually goes downwards, a cross-court soft
shot or drive because you've allowed yourself room to play this, and finally you can also play more
effective over the top shots because your opponent has less time to react. The last benefit of having
your racket in this early position is that you'll be more comfortable when playing the shot. You
won't be tucked up like this as you're not wasting the preparation time bringing the racket up from
your ankles or even switching grips if you're in an extreme forehand or backhand grip like this.
Being in an early and comfortable position will help you to master the soft touch and control
part of the mid-court. This is really important for making your opponents move right to the net
and setting yourself up for a short lift or it can be an outright winner. To maximize your touch and
control in the mid-court it's really important to have a nice relaxed grip. If you have a tense grip
then you'll lose control and be more likely to make a mistake or play a bad quality shot. You also
really want to feel the shuttle onto your strings and by this I mean you almost want to have the shuttle
on your strings for as long as possible, guiding it over the net. This sounds strange but give it a go
when you're next practicing. There's also an art to moving really fast but keeping your arm nice and
relaxed to be able to play with control. Naturally when you're trying to move really fast your body
tenses up so you need to practice this and you can do this by either having this as a focus area
during a game, or in a simple practice like this: Here you can see Greg is focusing on moving fast
whilst always playing soft controlled shots back to me as the feeder. We've said this before on
the channel but this is one of Greg's favourite routines to do just before a match. Notice how
his racket is always up and ready before I hit my shot and also notice how he's stepping in with his
racket leg for each and every shot, and keeping his upper body nice and relaxed. These soft shots can
honestly be so effective especially when you're early to the shuttle and can spot gaps in the court.
It's definitely a skill that's not used enough at all levels of the game! If you can't get your
technique right in the rally, or feel yourself tensing up a lot of the time, then try practicing
one shot at a time and work on your soft control shots to different positions on the court.
And remember these shots can all be done much easier once you get your racket up a bit higher
and out in front of you. And of course we'll never say this is how you have to do something
because there'll always be people like Kevin Sukamoljo who can have their rackets by the
ankles most of the time, but remember to do this effectively you have to have the racket speed of
Kevin to go from low down to high up in a matter of milliseconds which we can tell you isn't easy!
And of course you can lower your racket down from this position when you go into defense but we're
talking about being above the tape in the mid court here. And as we mentioned in our "How To Read The Game"
video you also need to practice noticing where your opponent is hitting their shot from and
then get used to adjusting your racket position so you're ready for this likely shot. You can
therefore take the shuttle earlier! If you haven't checked that video out yet, we'd highly recommend
watching it so just click this video over here. Or if you want to perfect your backhand drive
then click this video over here. And if you've enjoyed today's video please don't forget to
give it a like, smash the subscribe button if you haven't already and we'll see you on another video!