Badminton

Badminton

Badminton is a popular racket sport played by using rackets and shuttlecocks where the cock is hit back and forth across a net. The sport can be played either individually or in a team of two on opposite halves of a rectangular court that is divided by a net.

A Badminton match

It is estimated that the sport has 220 million fans around the globe. Competitive badminton is always played indoors because shuttlecock flight is strongly affected by wind but they are also played outdoors as a casual recreational activity, often as a garden or beach game.

History

The game is believed to have been invented in India where it was called “poona”. Later, the British army officers stationed in India learned the game in 1870 where the duke of Beaufort introduced the sport in 1873 as Badminton in his country estate. Its origins can also be traced back to ancient Greece and China which have a close relation to old children's game battledore and shuttlecock. The Bath Badminton Club was formed in 1887 but was replaced in 1893 by Badminton association of England. The International Badminton Federation was founded in 1934.

Objective

A smash

The objective of badminton is to make the shuttlecock hit the ground in the opponent's court and win more sets to win the game. This game can be played in three variants; singles, doubles, and mixed doubles. A shuttle cock is 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. A rally goes on till it lands on the court or till one of the players commits a fault.

Team Size

A Mix Doubles

The game can be played either individually or with a partner. There are three variant types of this game: Singles, Double an Mix Double. In Singles, it is an individual one-on-one and in Doubles, a team of two members each plays against each other. Whereas in Mix Doubles, a team of two of opposite gender will play against each other.

The Court

A Badminton Court

The sport is played on a rectangular court measuring 44 ft x 17 ft (13.4 x 5.18 m) for a singles match and 44 ft x 20 ft (13.4 x 6.1 m) for a doubles match. The net is 5 ft (1.5 m) high and stretches across the center of the court which is divided on each side by a service line, 6.6' ft (1.98 m) from the net for both singles and doubles, with an added long service line, 2.6' ft from the back boundary.

Rules

A jump smash

·      Players are not allowed to touch the net with their body or their rackets.

·      The birdie should land inside the boundary lines of the court and should not come to rest on the players' racket during the play.

·      The birdie should be hit from below the waist in an underhand motion when serving and it should not hit the ceiling.

·      The receivers should not touch the lines on the court before the server has hit the birdie.