Badminton: History, Rules, And Equipment

Badminton is an amazing and fun sport, which is regularly by approximately 220 million people around the world.

It can be played indoors and outdoors; however, major international level competitions are held indoors because they want to reduce the influence caused by external factors such as wind and lights to the minimum level. Many national and international tournaments are held yearly, and many badminton lovers participate.

Rather than this, badminton is much more than a fun sport, and here in this article, I will explain badminton’s history, rules, and equipment in brief.

So, let’s begin:

History of badminton

Badminton is a racket sport and was invented about 2000 years ago. However, it has a long history as badminton originated from the ancient game “Battledore and Shuttlecock”, where two or more players hit the ball with the help of a racket and try to keep it in the air.

It first originated in Pune, India and was named Poona (after the garrison town of Poona city). In the 1860s, the British officers stationed in India adopted this sport and took it to England, where it got its name after the Duke of Beaufort’s House in Gloucestershire.

The first badminton club was formed in 1887 as the Bath Badminton Club, later replaced by the Badminton Association of England in 1893.

In 1872, badminton’s first rules and regulations were formed at Poona. The people of England started playing this sport in 1887, with the regulations made in India, and later, J. H. E Hart of The Bath Club changed some rules and regulations according to people’s ideas. Finally, in 1983 the BAE (Badminton Association of England) officially launched these rules at Dunbar House, located in Portsmouth, on 13 September.

The governing body of this sport, BWF, was formed on 5 July 1934 and held Scotland, England, Wales, Denmark, Canada, France, Ireland, and the Netherlands as its founding members. Currently, it has 176 member nations.

The headquarters of this federation is located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and it holds approximately 198 member associations worldwide.

This sport first appeared in the Olympics Games in 1972 as a demonstrating sport. Later in 1988, it seemed as an exhibition sport in the Olympics. In late 1992 it was declared a medal sport, where the competitions where singles and doubles competitions were held. Mixed doubles were later introduced four years later in 1966 games.

Basic badminton rules and regulations

BWF (Badminton World Federation) has set some rules and regulations, that every player has to follow on the court:

A badminton match begins with a serve.
A player cannot serve or start the game unless his opponent gets ready.

While performing a serve, the player’s feet should not go beyond the boundary lines.
A player is not allowed to muddle his opponent by any means during the match.
In case a player misses the shuttlecock, then he cannot retry it or else it will be counted as a fault.

A player is also not allowed to fling or hold the shuttle on the racket bed for too long.
A player cannot hit the shuttlecock over the net or before it enters his court.
Generally, a badminton match begins with 0-0 points, and when the server scores a point in even number then he needs to serve from the right side of the court and when he score in odd, then he needs to serve from the left side of the court.

If the receiver wins a rally, he scores a point and becomes the new server.
A badminton match is played in three sets of 21 points each. To win a badminton match a team has to win two sets out of these three.
The side that wins the game becomes the one to serve first in the next game.

Faults

A player cannot perform a serve from above his waistline.
Player’s feet must be inside the boundary lines while serving or performing a shot.
A player is not allowed to jump or move while performing a service.

The shuttlecock should not touch the player’s body or clothes.
A player cannot touch the net during the match.
A player can also not hit the shuttlecock twice.

Lets

Lets are those calls which are made during or in between the match by the umpire or the players. Now let me explain you when these calls are made:

When a shuttlecock gets stuck in the net or falls apart.
If any player faces injury during the match.

In case, the umpire is unable to make decision.
If a server serves before his opponent gets ready.

Badminton equipment

A badminton player must have these gear with him before entering the court:

Badminton racket

A racket plays a vital role in this sport as these rackets help to hit the shuttlecock over the net from one court to other. These rackets are made of carbon fibre, graphite, aluminium, and wood.

These rackets are also classified into different categories like head light, head heavy, and even balanced. But let me inform you that an ideal badminton racket weighs between 71-90 grams and should be 11 3/8 inches long.

Rather than this, a racket is classified into five parts: stringed area, head, shaft, throat, and handle. The head of the racket is also known as the frame, which measures about 680 mm long and 230 mm wide.

Shuttlecock

Shuttlecocks are even known as a birdie that is made up of goose left wing feathers, nylon, or plastic. These shuttlecocks are high-drag projectiles with a conical shape and are open from the top. An ideal shuttlecock weighs around 4.75-5.50 grams.

Badminton players generally use two types of shuttlecocks: feathered and plastic shuttlecocks. Feathered shuttlecocks are used for international and professional level tournaments, whereas plastic shuttlecocks are usually used for practicing and playing domestic matches.

A net

A net is placed in the middle of the court, dividing it into two equal parts. A net creates the objective of hitting the shuttle and landing it in the opponent’s court to win a point without touching it.

Badminton nets are made up of nylon mesh, polyester, and plastic. The width of a net is 20 feet, and the height of the posts is 5 feet 1 inch long from the ground.

On the other hand, the net height in the centre measures approximately 5 feet, and the overall size of a net is 2 feet 6 inches.

Badminton attire

To play badminton, you must require shorts, skirts, synthetic sports t-shirts, socks, and a pair of non-marking shoes.

Badminton is the fastest sport, where a player has to perform fast and quick moves, making the player sweat a lot. So, I suggest you wear breathable and soft fabric shorts and a t-shirt.

Rather than this, proper badminton attire boosts the player’s confidence and helps the audience identify the team or the player.

Final Words

Badminton is the fastest racket sport and also the second most popular sport in the world after soccer. Its history defines that it has a long story from Poona till getting its name after the Duke of Beaufort’s House in Gloucestershire.

And I hope I have explained it well. Now I would like to hear from you:

Have you ever tried playing this sport? If yes, then let us know how your experience was, and it can become the first most popular sport in the comment section below.

Badminton: History, Rules, And Equipment

History of badminton