Can I be an England Badminton player ???

Discussion in 'General Forum' started by Sports10, Mar 19, 2019.

  1. Sports10

    Sports10 Regular Member

    Joined:
    Mar 19, 2019
    Messages:
    94
    Likes Received:
    12
    Location:
    UK
    I started playing sport at 10 for a casual club and i played more regularly from 14 and joined a more serious club i just tuned 16 and think my game is better then all people in my club and am looking to play county soon and take it frorm there
    So , the most important question is i guess....
    Do u think im too late and too old for being considered to play singles for National team - personally i dont think this but reassurance is always good
     
  2. phihag

    phihag Regular Member

    Joined:
    Mar 4, 2014
    Messages:
    1,008
    Likes Received:
    730
    Location:
    Germany
    While it's great to have a long-term goal to dream of, more immediate goals are more productive.
    1. To play in the National team, you have to be of a level to place top 4 in the national Championships.
    2. To qualify for the national championships, you have to win or place highly in the regional Championships (U19) / Gold level circuits (O19).
    3. To qualify for the regional championships / Gold level circuits, you have to win or place highly in the county championships / Silver level circuits.
    4. To qualify for the county championships / Silver level circuits, you have to win or place highly in the local championships / Bronze level circuits.
    That's just the tournaments. In practice, a player is very unlikely to reach a level without a certain number of hours of play and training. Therefore, your first goal should not be one of the above tournament results, but to enter a good training schedule. The trouble is that one has to show good results already to have a chance to enter the best training setups, especially at age 16.

    Your competition is training twice a day, about 20 hours a week. On top of that, they're playing/competing 5-10 hours a week. They have done such a training program since about age 14, and had less intensive starting at age 6-11 (and some even younger – there's a reason why many good badminton player's parents are coaches or good players themselves).

    You likely can't match that right now, neither physically nor financially, and probably don't have halls & coaches for that much time. So you have to be crafty and find or create training as well as playing opportunities. Join good clubs that offer structured training. Go to training camps. Find a 1:1 coach or a training partner. Work on your fitness in your own time or in a gym. Seek out good players to play against, and compete in tournaments. Read about theory, badminton tactics, strategy, mindset, nutrition, health, sleep, competition etc. .

    Bear in mind that Badminton is fun even if you don't compete at the very highest levels. The vast majority of players competes at lower levels and will never reach even county levels, and still enjoy the game and improving themselves.

    Honestly, it's unlikely that you'll make it into the national team. So plan accordingly – unless you have very wealthy parents, playing badminton full-time after you finish school is unlikely, and you must have a fallback plan.

    But that doesn't mean there is no chance. Work on process first – you need enough high-quality training, and play/competition – and then stick to it, for years, continually improving the process as you get better and thus get more opportunities to enter better training. Best of luck!
     
    #2 phihag, Mar 19, 2019
    Last edited: Mar 20, 2019
    Sports10, darrengsaw, kwun and 3 others like this.
  3. speCulatius

    speCulatius Regular Member

    Joined:
    May 17, 2017
    Messages:
    1,129
    Likes Received:
    1,210
    Location:
    'round here....
    As much as I appreciate @phihag's detailed post (cannot think of anything to add at the moment), I'll try to sum up what must be on your mind.

    1. School/education is more important than Badminton.
    2. Don't forget that badminton is supposed to be fun. It won't get you anywhere when you build up too much pressure and forget to enjoy it. I've seen it.
     
    LenaicM, phihag and kwun like this.
  4. kwun

    kwun Administrator

    Joined:
    Apr 24, 2002
    Messages:
    41,043
    Likes Received:
    2,066
    Occupation:
    BC Janitor
    Location:
    Santa Clara, CA, USA
    never stop dreaming. and it is great that young players dream because if they don't dream, no one will succeed. we do regularly have someone coming here and ask us if they can make it to be professional. it is possible. however, it is hard. @phihag 's post pretty much sums it up.

    however, one must also be realistic and have a plan B. besides training, you need to work hard on your school work. thousands of kids dream to play for their country, only a dozen or two ever makes it there.
     
    Sports10, speCulatius and phihag like this.
  5. Sports10

    Sports10 Regular Member

    Joined:
    Mar 19, 2019
    Messages:
    94
    Likes Received:
    12
    Location:
    UK
    WOW - thank you for taking your time to write this - this is amazing i do appreciate it!!!! -i did say though im not starting from scrach and do play daily for 2 hrs minimum and i have started this intensive training since 14 and got my foundations right when i was 10.
     
  6. Jay Ng

    Jay Ng Regular Member

    Joined:
    May 19, 2018
    Messages:
    48
    Likes Received:
    29
    Location:
    Portree
    Whereabouts are you in the U.K? Don’t give up on your dream, you’ll get noticed if you’re good enough but as mentioned you have to sacrifice time and money. Finding the right club and coach will make the biggest impact.

    Playing for your country can happen to ordinary people if they’ve got talent and commitment.
     
    Sports10 likes this.
  7. Sports10

    Sports10 Regular Member

    Joined:
    Mar 19, 2019
    Messages:
    94
    Likes Received:
    12
    Location:
    UK
    i do make surei do get good grades however i do find memorising textbooks meaningless compared to badminton and will prioritise it over education - its a more riskier but more rewarding path than education - doing what i love. My plan B will be getting a boring degree
     
    kwun likes this.
  8. Sports10

    Sports10 Regular Member

    Joined:
    Mar 19, 2019
    Messages:
    94
    Likes Received:
    12
    Location:
    UK
    london thx bro this is really encouraging
     
  9. Sports10

    Sports10 Regular Member

    Joined:
    Mar 19, 2019
    Messages:
    94
    Likes Received:
    12
    Location:
    UK
    i do attend a club though already and a good one
     
  10. Sports10

    Sports10 Regular Member

    Joined:
    Mar 19, 2019
    Messages:
    94
    Likes Received:
    12
    Location:
    UK
    also im thinking of buying astrox99 would a 3u or 4u be better - i play mostly singles
     
  11. Jay Ng

    Jay Ng Regular Member

    Joined:
    May 19, 2018
    Messages:
    48
    Likes Received:
    29
    Location:
    Portree
    The guy I know is in the Hertfordshire area and he coaches kids from a young age onwards. If you’re serious, I can ask him if it’s ok to pass his details onto you.
     
  12. Sports10

    Sports10 Regular Member

    Joined:
    Mar 19, 2019
    Messages:
    94
    Likes Received:
    12
    Location:
    UK
    I appreciate it thx
     
  13. Sports10

    Sports10 Regular Member

    Joined:
    Mar 19, 2019
    Messages:
    94
    Likes Received:
    12
    Location:
    UK
    so which racket
     
  14. Ouchie

    Ouchie Regular Member

    Joined:
    Nov 19, 2018
    Messages:
    426
    Likes Received:
    244
    Location:
    UK
    The one that suits your desired play style based on an arbitrary set of requirements and backed up by science and stuff.
    Do you like the colour orange? :p

    Stringersworld or other more local shops (Gefen, Tennisnuts, etc) and players may be able to offer a demo of your choices or even 88d in 4U or 3U, then you can decide properly. There are already enough posts asking about differences between the various astrox (astroxes, astroxi?) it is very much personal preference.

    4U will be (relatively) quicker but less powerful and less tiring, suitable if you are wristy, explosive and fast around court and look for net kills and flat drives.
    3U if your arm is strong enough, you look to force lifts and can position yourself behind the shuttle to take advantage of the extra power you can generate from a full swing.
     
    Sports10 likes this.
  15. Sports10

    Sports10 Regular Member

    Joined:
    Mar 19, 2019
    Messages:
    94
    Likes Received:
    12
    Location:
    UK
    but - with head heavy ax999 doesnt 4u feel like a 3u?
     
  16. Ouchie

    Ouchie Regular Member

    Joined:
    Nov 19, 2018
    Messages:
    426
    Likes Received:
    244
    Location:
    UK
    It's all relative. It is still a 4U and can't gain weight magically. How it feels on impact, how it feels on a block, how it feels with a wrist flick and how it feels with a full blooded smash will all be different. I used to play with a 15 year old county player who used a 2U Ti10, she (yes, a girl) had great touch and a reasonable smash, she was really good at setup and getting her racket in position early. It is not about the racket but the player exploiting their equipment. How you play can make the choice succeed or fail so work out how you play or want to play then work back from there.

    Badminton probably has ideal body types and racket types yet here we are with ever more choices and trying to decide if +/-5 grams makes a difference. 2019 seems to be about option paralysis :confused:
     
    LenaicM and Sports10 like this.
  17. philippap30

    philippap30 New Member

    Joined:
    Dec 11, 2019
    Messages:
    1
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    Paris
    You are right because dreaming can have a negative impact on perseverance and the realization of your
     

Share This Page