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I’m here to tell you about a badminton hitting technique that is rarely mentioned in books or instructional videos, but is a high level and useful technique that the world’s best doubles players use it in nearly every rally. So what exactly is this mysterious technique I’m talking about and what is it called? Keep on reading to find out.
In order to make it easy for people to understand, I gave this technique a descriptive nickname which is the “backhand grip forehand shot”. Note that this shot is completely different from the so called “around the head shot”, which is when a person uses a forehand stroke and going around his/her head to hit the bird on his/her backhand side. The technique I’m talking about is actually the exact opposite: the “backhand grip forehand shot” is done by using a backhand to return a shot (usually a drive or a smash) on your forehand side. This technique is especially effective in a fast-paced doubles game, but unfortunately nobody seems to talk about it, and there’s next to no articles that mention this very useful technique. This is why I wrote this article, in order to make people aware of this technique and to encourage some discussion regarding this subject.
Let’s look at an example of a team making using of the “backhand grip forehand shot”. In the men’s doubles finals in the 2004 Summer Olympics, if you carefully watch the players when they are defending, paying special attention on their grip and strokes, you’ll see that they are using the “backhand grip forehand shot” technique. This technique is pretty hard for the opponent to pick out, and it’s very effective when used on a defense. When one side has the upper hand and is sending one smash after another, the defending side wants not only to be able to return the shots but also want to turn the tide back in their favour, and the “backhand grip forehand shot” is a great way to do that as demonstrated by the two pairs of players in that gold metal match.
When in defensive mode, the usual stance is to stand with the right foot slightly in front (for right-handed people), legs slightly bent, and body crouched low while holding the racket with the backhand grip in order to return smashes. When the offensive shot by the opponent is very sharp/steep, the defending player will most likely have to hit the bird with the racket pointing up. When a powerful smash or drive is flying towards your face and/or upper body, you usually won’t be able to react in time to change back into the forehand grip then make the return because the bird’s speed is simply too fast. However, if you are crouched low enough, you should be able to return the shot without changing your grip and swinging very much, and if you hit it right, the return will be a quick flat drive right back to the opponent, which may force them to make a bad return that your side can capitalize upon. The versatility of this technique can be seen when watching world class badminton competitions, where the player will use the backhand grip to return shot on both forehand and backhand side. Some of these players can also use the “backhand grip forehand shot” technique to hit underhand shots on the forehand side as well, giving this technique one more possible use.
If you want to learn more about this “backhand grip forehand shot” technique, especially the nuances of the motion, I would recommend watching some world class doubles (especially men’s) matches, where the players use this technique as their main form of defense and counterattack. There aren’t a whole lot of books and instructional videos out there about this subject, so you’ll just have to watch some matches and learn it yourself by practicing whenever you have a chance.