I never think about the split step, I just do it. In game you never have the time to think about motion related stuff, best to learn it in more isolated context , e.g. shadow steps/shadow play, where you have the time for little breaks and slow down if necessary. I did not learn the split step by playing games, but by doing a lot of footwork training, it is a lot more efficient. Playing with lot of older people (lol, being myself 49yo), I can easily tell you who had a 'classic' training in his youth and who not, by just observing their footwork.
Hi, you should really loosen your grip before the action. You will notice improvement in your racket speed.
Smash, drop and clear all have similar startup. This video may help. Look carefully at his foot positioning, left arm and right arm. And the speed of the shot. Hopefully timestamped it to start at 1:20.
Played few games recently in last week but not too much training in last month as covid strucked my family also work was crazy and was hard to find some time. Still noticed I cannot generate power with my smash. Feel like I try hit hard but shuttle dont fly that fast.
Hi again. I see from your backyard drills how you want to throw your hip and back leg forward. Just forget that throwing your hip when doing your drill. No matter what the "teachers" say. In real you just don't do it that way. You just need some support from your back leg when transferring your weight to your front leg. Watch carefully youtube smashing and clearing. The idea is to give the maximum speed to the racket head when it hits the bird. In order to do that, don't hit any kind of brakes before the hitting point by adjusting something, or throwing your hip.
Probably still holding the racquet too tightly in the early part of the swing and also using a big swing to generate power. With tight muscles in that early phase, you can't generate the whiplash and the acceleration of the racquet head into the shuttle.
Did some footwork drills today front corners and middle court could you please give me some feedback please . I recorded only middle court on my phone. Struggled bit how many shuttles to use and how many reps to do. I did 6 shuttles and 3 sets. Didnt concentrate on speed just on technique first.
Four areas to improve: When you move from the middle, your feet are not landing on the ground at the same time on the split step. When you are in the middle, you stand up very straight. Crouch down more and keep low. When you go to the right side and pick up the shuttle, your left arm is not going backwards to counter balance (on the left side it does) After you lunge with the right leg, the trailing left leg can pull more closely. This will shift your centre of gravity more towards the centre of your body and make it easier to recover from the lunge with your right leg.
An extra tip for advanced technique, on the first step, also reach out to the side with your right arm and left arm back. At the moment , your right arm moves to pick/put down the shuttle on the last step. If you reach out early , that will set a good habit for your game in the future.
Hi guys again. I keep working on my footwork but as iam tall person Iam not really fast enough on court. Plus noticed I really struggle to go back to shuttle in rear court. Is skipping and fast feet exercises will help me to move a bit faster ?
Practice the footwork! You can watch and imitate tall pros if you want ideas. Can't remember your exact height, but I think Chen Long and Victor Axelson are quite tall. Step one, Split step or directional split step in the direction you want to travel. This loads your legs and lowers your centre of gravity for faster movement. Step two + three. Inbetween steps depending on forehand or backhand. These could be chassé steps, or putting the left leg behind the right leg. Step four "china jump" / Jump / move into the shot with your racquet Step five, recover and move to a base position if needed in anticipation for the next shot. You can even count alloud if that helps you get the muscle memory down. Practically every educational badminton youtube channel has a video on this footwork. Tobias wakenda, badminton insight etc etc. Pick your favourite -- Being a tall player, you can get away with less "in between" steps because you should have a longer stride and lunge than us shorties.
One thing you can do to get more effect out of your lower body is to take a step back with the left foot to match the right foot rather than moving the right foot forward. After you hit the stroke you follow through with the right foot. This should result in higher torque in the hip area. Example from Kenichi Tago:
