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A Brief History of Badminton

Badminton is a sport for two or four people. The game is either one player against
one player or a team of two players against another team of two players. The
players use rackets to hit a shuttlecock over a net.

A badminton-like game was known in ancient Greece and Egypt – a game called
battledore and shuttlecock – in which two players hit a feathered shuttlecock back
and forth with tiny rackets.

The game was played in India during the 18th Century, at which time it was called
“Poona” . In the 1860s it was adopted by British Army officers stationed in India.
The officers took the game back to England, where it became a success at a party
given by the Duke of Beaufort in 1873 at his estate called “Badminton” in
Gloucestershire.

In 1877, the newly formed Bath Badminton Club arranged the first set of written
rules. In 1899, the All England Open Badminton Championships, the first
badminton competition in the world, was held. Since 1992, Badminton has been an
Olympic sport. The first was in the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain.

Although badminton originated in England, it is mainly played in countries of Asia

such as China, Indonesia and the Republic of Korea that now dominates this sport.

Objective
The objective of badminton is similar to that of other racket games. This game can
be played in three variants; singles, doubles, and mixed doubles. A shuttle cock is
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shot with a wired metal rimmed racket across the net, called a serve, to player(s) on
the other side of the court who try to send it back.

Each player tries to land the shuttle cock on the opposite teams while intercepting
it on their side. The cock has to fly over the net and reach the other side once a
player hits it. The shuttlecock volleys among the players to make a rally, and they
hit it with their rackets till it lands on the court or till one of the players commits a
fault.

The player scores a point if the opposite player misses the shuttle. These hits can
either be smashes, slow and light, or flat and low.

Badminton Rules
Badminton is a sport that has been around since the 16th century. The sport is
played indoors and the pinnacle comes from its Olympic events. The sport is very
popular in Asian countries such as China and India with these countries leading the
way by producing some of the world’s best players.

 A game can take place with either two (singles) or four (doubles) players.
 An official match has to be played indoors on the proper court dimensions.
The dimensions are 6.1m by 13.4m, The net is situated through the middle
of the court and is set at 1.55m.
 To score a point the shuttlecock must hit within the parameters of the
opponents court.
 If the shuttlecock hits the net or lands out then a point is awarded to your
opponent.
 Players must serve diagonally across the net to their opponent. As points are
won then serving stations move from one side to the other. There are no
second serves so if your first serve goes out then your opponent wins the
point.
 A serve must be hit underarm and below the servers waist. No overarm
serves are allowed.
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 Each game will start with a toss to determine which player will serve first
and which side of the court the opponent would like to start from.
 Once the shuttlecock is ‘live’ then a player may move around the court as
they wish. They are permitted to hit the shuttlecock from out of the playing
area.
 If a player touches the net with any part of their body or racket then it is
deemed a fault and their opponent receives the point.
 A fault is also called if a player deliberately distracts their opponent, the
shuttlecock is caught in the racket then flung, the shuttlecock is hit twice or
if the player continues to infract with the laws of badminton.
 Each game is umpired by a referee on a high chair who overlooks the game.
There are also line judges who monitor if the shuttlecock lands in or not. The
referee has overriding calls on infringements and faults.
 Let may be called by the referee if an unforeseen or accidental circumstance
arose. These may include the shuttlecock getting stuck in the bet, server
serving out of turn, one player was not ready or a decision which is too close
to call.
 The game has only two rest periods coming the form of a 90 second rest
after the first game and a 5 minute rest period after the second game.
 If the laws are continuously broken by a player then the referee holds the
power to dock that player of points with persisting fouls receiving a forfeit
of the set or even the match.
Scoring
A point is scored when you successfully hit the shuttlecock over the net and land it
in your opponent’s court before they hit it. A point can also be gained when your
opponent hits the shuttlecock into either the net or outside the parameters

Winning the Game

To win a game you must reach 21 points before your opponent. If you do so then
you will have won that set. If the scores are tied at 20-20 then it comes down to
whichever player manages to get two clear points ahead. If the points are still tied
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at 29-29 then the next point will decide the winner of the set. Winning the overall
game will require you to win 2 out of the 3 sets played.

Equipments

Badminton Racket
Modern Badminton Rackets are light in weight and don’t weigh more than 100
grams. The frame of the Racket can be made of common metals like steel or
aluminium. Sometimes rackets are made of alloys, tough carbon fiber, ceramic, or
boron. Its length does not exceed 680mm and width does not exceed 230 mm.

Shuttlecock
Sixteen feathers fixed in a cork base enveloped in a thin leather sheet make a
shuttlecock. Interestingly, the best Badminton Shuttlecocks are made from feathers
from the wing of a goose. The shuttle weighs between 4.74 to 5.50 grams.

Badminton Shoes
A good pair of Badminton Shoes provide good grip, cushioning and some
flexibility at the forefoot.
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Badminton Accessories
The commonly used Badminton Accessories are Grip, Badminton Clothes, Socks,
Wrist Band and Head Band.

Grip
A grip made of cloth or synthetic fiber absorbs sweat and provides you a drier feel.

Badminton Clothes
Comfortable T-shirts and shorts, that don’t hinder your movement are ideal to play
Badminton. A cotton round-neck or a collar t-shirts with a pair of light shorts are
usually preferred.
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Socks
Wear a pair of thick cotton socks as they help to absorb sweat. They also prevent
your feet from slipping inside your shoes. Avoid wearing Nylon socks that don’t
absorb sweat.

Wrist Band
If you perspire a lot, you may consider getting a wrist band that prevents your
sweat from flowing to your racket handle.

Head Band
Wear a Head Band if you wear spectacles. It prevents your lenses from getting wet
and also stops the sweat and hair fromgetting into your eyes while playing.