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Badminton footwork coachThao Dang
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A free weekly puzzle

Get round the court faster, one step at a time

A free letter every Sunday: one footwork puzzle with three hints, and last week’s worked through in full.

Player lunging on a green court in a sports hall
  • No. 48
  • Medium
  • 10 minutes
  • Half a court

Fix the player who is late to the back corner

A club player is always late to the back corner. Their ready stance and split step are fine, and they start moving as soon as the opponent hits. But their first step goes sideways, towards the tramline, and it takes them five steps to get from the centre to the back corner. A good player takes three. Which one change fixes it? A: a wider split step. B: turn the hips so the first step goes backwards, off the back foot. C: a faster arm swing. D: a longer rest between rallies.

Work it out here

  • Hint 1

    Watch where the first step goes, not how fast the player moves.

  • Hint 2

    Five steps against three means two steps are wasted. Ask where they were spent.

  • Hint 3

    Look for the option that changes the direction of the first step.

Show the answer

B. The first step decides the route. A sideways first step wastes two steps, so the player turns the hips and pushes off the back foot to go straight back, and the corner takes three steps, not five. A wider split step, a faster arm swing and a longer rest do not change where the first step goes.

Last week’s puzzle

Count the shuttles in a feeding drill

A feeder sends one shuttle every four seconds. A drill is six rounds of twenty seconds, with forty seconds of rest between one round and the next. How many shuttles does the player face, and how long does the drill take from the first shuttle to the last?

  1. The steps 1

    Say it in words

    I need the shuttles in one round, then in six rounds, then the time including the rests.

  2. The steps 2

    Count one round

    Twenty seconds divided by four seconds is 5 shuttles.

  3. The steps 3

    Count six rounds

    5 shuttles times 6 rounds is 30 shuttles.

  4. The steps 4

    Add up the time

    Six rounds of 20 seconds is 120 seconds. Five rests of 40 seconds is 200 seconds. Together that is 320 seconds, or 5 minutes 20 seconds.

  5. The steps 5

    Check it

    Six rounds have only five rests between them, not six. The drill ends on the last shuttle, so the answer is 30 shuttles in 5 minutes 20 seconds.

White shuttlecocks tumbling out of a worn tube onto the court

Every week

Past puzzles

Outdoor night court under a street lamp in an alley

About me

I started playing badminton at a school club and never stopped. Now I coach club players two evenings a week in a sports hall, and when the hall is full I play on a painted court under a street lamp, with the net tied to two poles.

Everything I post is how I actually teach: where the first step goes, how to get back to the centre and how to train so the third game feels like the first. The puzzles and the letter are free. What I sell is the part you can print and take to the court: drill sheets, planners and cards, a fitness guide, and two courses for club players who want to move better.

Downloads, a course and merch

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