Usually, I play double. I dont have problem playing double with someone who arent able to clear or smash. I will let him or her take care of the front court because these people seem to be very good at net shot, and I do not have to worry about the front. Whenever I play with this set up, I m able to smash, clear, and even drop in correct form. I feel like I can control it. At the same level or above, I do not have any problem. I can smash, clear, return, net shot easily. I feel fun and I feel like I could get better and better. However, I always have problems playing with "non" attacking partner. In this term, sometime old people or beginners who have some basic from others sport like tennis. I feel like I didnt play in "badminton rhythm". They mostly can do drop shot, but not smash or clear. I wouldnt know the shot they made either clear or smash. When they try to clear, it wont go deep enough. When they smash it is not effective. I feel like I'm not myself. I can't "play" badminton at all when I face with this kind of game. I can't clear, smash, or even drop. Even my footwork is gone( im not perfect at footwork yet, but it is worst when playing with them) . Suddenly, I will lost all my concentration and then I feel like I dont wanna play anymore, but I couldnt just walk out. Later on, I figured out something that these people they will keep "trying to clear" more than smash or drop, and like i said they couldnt make a real clear shot, so the opponents always have the upper hand in term of attacking. (they mostly blame me as well) I really wanna know how do I fix this. Could I be able to play with this game? Which area should I improve (honestly I lost all my footwork playing with this kind of game)? I thought of trying to not play with them, but I think If I m good enough I would be able to handle it.
nah Im not finding excuses to not play. If I wanted to find a way to not play with the certain one, I wouldnt post this thread. The easiest way is just to deny to play with them. I m here to ask a question how do I improve my game to be able to play "with" them. I dont wanna be an ass who deny to play with certain people. I do not know if u ever had to play with any of those or not. Those ppl tend to get upset when they lose and blame their partner.
I used to be the same and lose all my motivation when playing against beginners. I always felt bad about it but just couldn't give my all. Then discussed this with one of the uncles in my club and he told me to concentrating on playing very good quality shots and work on my placement as you have more time playing with people who are worse than you. This what I have been doing since and it usually works, i concentrate on the shot quality so much that i tend to forget who i am playing with.
I will try to concentrate more on shot quality. I think maybe because I m not good at mid court, so my footwork got mess up everytime when I try to be there.
You definitely have the right not playing with people with poor attitude. I believe we all have obligation to play with lower levels players. Remember, we were all beginners before and we will grow old.
that's why I try to find a way to be able to play with them cuz I know I was once a beginner and I'm not a pro there are still millions players that better than me, and I make sure I will grow old with good attitude( I know a lot of oldies who are still good at badminton and they play with brain and good attitude) ;D Im more than welcome to play with lower levels who doesnt bring the attitude to the table like I said earlier. I'm fine playing with the one who arent able to play and let them take the front court.
I completely see where you're coming from and agree that you should give beginners who want to improve every chance possible. However i think when a beginner joins a doubles game that is considerably above their level, letting him stay at the net is probably a good thing. They have fewer responsibilities and most importantly they have someone who can provide a bit of cover at the back when they miss the shuttle.
The key point to play with a weaker partner is to involve yourself. Similar to mixed doubles, opponents will try to force the weaker hand to the back and wait for a loose shot. Read/anticipate opponents' and your partner's next shots and intercept. Try to be relaxed, ready to cover court like in a singles game. This is actually harder than playing singles since your partner's shot quality may not be as good. If you are doing your job, you should sweat a lot more than a normal men's/mixed doubles game.
This happend with me also. What I did is that I use a tennis racket with two leg sand bags. When I get use to the bags, I increased the weight.
It means that you are not able to adapt to a different tempo of game. You like the game to be attacking with fast exchanges. Everyone has a natural tempo and it is only understandable that a player suffers when being forced to play a different tempo. In fact this is a legit strategy that can be employed when you know your opponent is used to a certain tempo and doesn't favor a certain tempo. I bet if you let your partner just play at the front and you controlling the rallies from behind, you will have a more comfortable game. My suggestion is to find out what you are struggling with. So when your partner lifts, how do you position yourself? Are you relaxed and prepared for the multiple choice of shot options that your opponent is presented with by the weak lift of your partner? Do you have the correct "waiting" stance to move forward or backward or to defend? Remember in a fast attacking game options for your opponents are dramatically cut down, it becomes a game of reactions and fast movements. Do you find yourself moving to cover the front of the court when the shuttle is lifted on your side only to find your partner lifting it back or playing a weak smash that your partner can easily put away? Do you have a counter strategy in this case? These type of games when playing with a non-attacking partner presents you with an opportunity to improve different aspects of your skills. Learning to adapt to this rhythm will only help your game.
For example, I played with an elder. I believe he was great, but he is 60 years old now. No doubt, he can't beat younger people in term of power (All I do when playing against him I just need to make a good clear shot then he's done) . I couldnt position myself correctly unlike playing fixed front and back court. He tended to have double men stance which make himself a weak spot ( like I said the opponent just need to lift or clear to him and make sure it is deep enough) . He would stand at the middle of the court, and miss most of the corner shot since he is old, so he wasnt able to reach far end. And it seems like the opponent also knew our weak spot. They just kept attacking right in the middle which I couldnt cover since it supposed to be his forehand, but like I said he is old, so he couldnt make a quality return shot ( and I'm not good at backhand clear yet, so I need more time to prepare to make the overhead shot) . In this case, I think he doesnt realize that he is old, and I really dont want to let him down by telling him the truth because we just play at a club not in professional level. All I want is that I want him to have fun and be him. He would not please if I let him stay at the front court as well.
I don't want to sound harsh but here are my 2 cents on this subject: You cannot get better when playing with (much) weaker players! You just can't. Anybody telling you the opposite is lying. Sure, you can try practicing shot placement, movement etc. but you can do that in drills a million times more effective. If you only play with weaker players your level of play will decrease over the course of time. You will only take up bad habits better players will punish you for if you do so. It's a fact that weaker players are not able to emulate the situations you will need to improve if you are much better. I'm not saying you shouldn't play with weaker players and have fun but I don't expect to get better.
^ agree on the above post. Many a times at the local club, one might end up in a situation of playing with/against a weaker/slower/non-attacking player. Even if three players have a "similar" skill level the fact that the lone player is at a different level is bound to spoil the game. This is a very real scenario at many local clubs if you are part of an exclusive group that just refuses to play with anyone outside the group or having someone part of the group. In this case you can only hope to gain as much as possible. But it's a challenge to improve your game if you consistently play with/against weaker opponents.
I agree that there are middle people who love lifts and stay at midcourt. These people can't go front nor back. They always play side to side. More strange is their technique is quite good. It creates confusion. Which is where the point is lost.
This is true. The best solution I've found is to coach the other players and make them better. By teaching you analyze what you are doing and often get a better understanding yourself. I've been able to bring up the level of play of all the other members, some of them enough so that they are able to challenge me quite a bit now. I know I'm not just getting worse because I'm playing better in the local tournaments. I'm also "old", in my 50's, and playing mostly against people half my age, so don't think older people can't improve, (though admittedly I'm in better shape than most people of any age.)
Now, I got an interesting question: Can one get better when playing with a weaker player (not extremely weak in comparison, just a little that you notice in the game) but playing against better players? What's your opinion, guys?
Of course the answer is: it depends. What standard are these people? For example, the weaker player could have excellent defence but lacking in power compared to the rest, and that is why he is a lower standard. But he can stay in the rally, therefore you have plenty of opportunity to play and improve. And if thats true - he can rally but not finish a smash, but is so consistent that he wins everything anyway, then he is by definition better than the other players because his defence is so good that it makes up for his lack of smash... you see where I am going with this? What does weaker even mean? Another scenario: If he has a good smash but can't defend at all, you will have zero rallies and nobody gains anything. So it all comes down to: are you able to have sensible rallies? If yes, then of course you can improve. If not, then you can't. Your partners weaknesses may determine what can/can't be improved in a particular game. If he can't serve very well, then you may never learn to attack the third shot as the rallies are over before they start. I hope that made sense!
