Badminton Basics-4: The low service

There is plenty of advice available all over the place on the techniques of serving well. Most of you who have played for a year or more would have developed a safe enough low serve; for those who want to improve there is always recourse to good videos online.

However, making your serve a weapon comes out of clever thinking and practice. The low serve is commonly considered to be a defensive shot, but an effective server can steal the occasional point by employing some variations. Here are some ways to improve your low serve (Credits: Pat Davis; Han Jian; Fred Brundle; Ken Davidson):

Two important rules on serving:

- Law 14 (a) (ii): It is a FAULT if, in serving any part of the shuttle at the instant of being struck be higher than the server’s waist. The top of the waist is an imaginary line round the body, level with the bottom of the lowest rib.

- Law 14 (a) (iii): It is a FAULT if, in serving, at the instant of the shuttle being struck, the shaft of the racket be not pointing in a downward direction to such an extent that the whole of the head of the racket is discernibly below the whole of the server’s hand holding the racket.

Some tips on effective serving

- Use the low serve when the shuttle is fast, and when the wind is behind you, because it’s hard to be accurate with the high serve as the wind might carry it out.

- On the low service, the trajectory of the shuttle is particularly important. Ideally, the flight of the shuttle should reach its highest point on the server’s side of the net. It should fall more steeply after crossing the net and, if left to drop, should be within an inch or two of the short service line.

- For the low serve, the shuttle is guided over the net, rather than hit. The direction of all serves should be varied. The drive serve is dangerous because it can be quickly intercepted and flicked to some unguarded spot on the court. A medium-pace drive serve, directed towards the chest of the receiver, is a variant type of serve which causes trouble to slow-moving or slow-thinking players. It is essential that the server should retain the element of surprise by varying the direction, height and speed of his serve no matter what serving base he assumes. To add to the deception, there should be no variation in the preliminary rhythmic forward swing of the racket as it meets the shuttle.

- In first-class badminton, the receiver – having to make a decision quickly – is apt to follow the natural swing of the arm. A clever and discerning server can by serving towards the right shoulder of the receiver force a forehand return and by serving towards the left shoulder force a backhand return. There is a point between the forehand and backhand which can make an oncoming receiver undecided whether to use the backhand or the forehand and consequently cramp the racket movement.

World No.1 Lee Chong Wei in action

- The angled drive serve, earlier called the ‘shooting’ serve, can be used as a surprise weapon. The serve is usually from the right-hand court, with the server standing a couple of feet to the right of his normal position. The object is to shoot the shuttle (from the righ-hand service court) onto your opponent’s backhand. It can be a very awkward to receive, especially if the receiver is not equipped with a round-the-head smash.

- There are many variations to the high service and low service. The drive service is one of them. To execute it, stand a bit further behind the service line so that the shuttle will pass the net at a flatter angle. Make sure your contact point is below the waist and your racket face is pointing down, or it can be considered a service fault.

- Flick service: The idea is to get the shuttle quickly past your opponent and give him less time to play his shot. The cocked wrist is crisply uncocked to flick the shuttle just above the receiver’s reach to the back doubles service line.

-