The most important aspect of badminton – FOOTWORK! Footwork is all about one thing… Effective energy usage. This footwork is basic, which means we start out by learning directional split step, side shuffle/cross behind, lunge and recover.
This article covers the front court with easy step by step tutorials – enjoy!
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In these videos, I know where the shuttle is going so I land my pushing foot first to get more momentum towards my desired corner. Landing with both feet is also correct and used to cover two corners. As we land the split step closer the corner we are facing after the split step, we add one more corner we cover. This way we cover three corners which can be used for tactical purposes, and we can split different ways depending on our strengths. I will get further into advanced footwork after I cover the basics.
Split step:
To move our body around the court the fastest way possible we need use the force from the ground, the ground reaction force. This is why we have to time our split step. As we land our split step we immediately get force from the ground. Imagine the ground was one big trampoline.
Lower body:
Balance is also key. Keeping our upper body as straight as possible is vital for recovery as well hence speed. Make sure to take few and long strides to keep our body in a upright position. This is all about moving our lower body as much as possible.
FOREHAND SIDE:
Covering the front forehand side is not as easy as it looks, you can cover the corner in several ways but in this video we cover it by split stepping and right leg behind left leg so we move quickly to the corner. It can also be done by a running movement if we have shorter legs like a 10 year old player or if we really have to cover a long distance.
BACKHAND SIDE:
The video shows the most common way to do the footwork. Pretty simple split step and one big lunge. You can also ad an skip with your left leg to cover longer area. When you move back from the net, the video shows a simple walk and jump movement. Also here it is possible to use another method, the attacking and quicker jump back to the middle. One jump back and then use the split step again to move to next corner.
Tip #1:
Always extend your non-racket arm backwards for better balance and recovery. Extend it as we get forward momentum. Don’t extend it all the time.
Tip #2:
Your shoulders should never go beyond your knees. This often occurs due to a short lunge when reaching far for the shuttle and you are using your upper body. Make sure to take a long lunge in the end.
Have a good practise from The Badminton Famly 🙂
