Feather or nylon shuttles
Which to buy for practice, for matches and for children, and how to make them last.
Doubles positions for club players
Attack and defence formations, and the simple habit that wins most club games.
Most of the games played in our hall are doubles, and most club pairs lose points for the same reason: both players end up on the same side, or both at the back, and the gap in the middle stays open.
The basic rule is simple. When your side is attacking, after you have hit the shuttle downward, play front and back. The player at the back smashes and drops; the player at the front stays near the service line and kills anything that comes back short or flat.
When your side is defending, after you have lifted the shuttle high, play side by side. Each player covers their half of the court, a little behind the centre, racket up and ready to block or drive the smash back.
The skill is in switching between the two quickly. Lift, and you both drop into side by side. Hit down, and the front player moves forward. Calling helps: say mine or yours early on shots down the middle.
Our Sunday doubles mixer is a good place to practise this. The coach running the board will sometimes stop a game for twenty seconds to show a pair where the gap was. Most players find their club games change within a month.
