Badminton Strokes

It's VERY IMPORTANT to learn the correct technique for the different type of badminton strokes in order to execute quality badminton shots.

Remember, you MUST master these basic strokes in order to play like a pro!

Basically a stroke is the swing motion of your racket arm. It is not a badminton shot. However you'll need to perform these strokes to hit certain shots.

The power of any badminton shot comes from how well you perform your badminton strokes (swing motion). A beginner should FIRST learn how to perform the CORRECT strokes.

Why is it important to perform the correct strokes from the start?

It is impossible to hit strong backhand shots in badminton if you perform the wrong backhand stroke.

Say a player didn't learn the correct badminton backhand stroke and have been hitting a backhand using 'his own style' for several years.

After few years of wrong backhand stroke technique, it's fairly difficult for this player to 're-learn' the correct backhand stroke technique. By that time he's already too used to the wrong technique.

Once you have developed the habit of performing your strokes, it's very difficult to change the way you perform these strokes in the future. Therefore, it's important that you learn the correct strokes right from the start (all types of strokes, not only the backhand)

If you realise that you're facing the same problem as the player above, it is not too late yet. It is still possible to change but it requires more effort and practice. This page provides you with all the information you need to execute the right badminton strokes.

The basic strokes are:

When the shuttle flies towards a particular area around your body, you'll need to use different strokes to hit the shuttle. The picture above shows you the 4 different areas around your body where you're required to use the 4 different badminton strokes to return the shuttle.

Once you learn how to perform these basic strokes, you can then use these strokes to hit all types of shots in badminton.

Improving Your Strokes

Do you want to produce beautiful badminton strokes consistently? I recommend training with badminton training rackets.

I find training rackets to be useful because it forces beginners (as well as intermediate players) to get the technique right.

The following shows you the different types of basic badminton shots you can learn once you master each stroke.

Overhead Forehand Stroke:

Badminton High Clear (Overhead)
A solid defensive shot to get you out of trouble.

Badminton Drop Shot
A semi defensive/offensive shot to get your opponent out of position.

Badminton Smash
One of the most powerful shots in badminton and is purely offensive in nature.

Overhead Backhand Stroke:

Badminton Backhand Clear (Overhead)
Master the backhand clear to improve your court coverage so that your opponent cannot threaten you when he hits to your backhand area.

Badminton Backhand Drop
Similar to the forehand drop shot, you can use the backhand drop when your opponent forces you to use the backhand.