Slow shuttles due to ambient, what should i do to win???

Discussion in 'Techniques / Training' started by Carlos (Mijas), Aug 22, 2015.

  1. Carlos (Mijas)

    Carlos (Mijas) Regular Member

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    whit this heat is almost impossible for me to win a single match, im a really fast player on the court and offensive at the same time. But last weeks specially my opponents toy with me in the matches, i couldnt attack, i couldnt reach a simple dropshot; my backhands useless...

    Is this because my technique, or my playing style? what do you people recommend me to do when the shuttle is too slow??
     
  2. Alex_Xu

    Alex_Xu Regular Member

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    It was funny because when I normally play I'm the uk I'm normally competent so when I went on holiday to china to visit my godparents I played and done absolute ****. it was 35 degrees inside a hot dark room with little light humid and tough air playing someone that's also very good
    I got destroyed all the sweat got to me I was drenched changed my clothings a good few times aswell. I thought it was the speed of the shuttle so I tipped it to go faster which did improve my game.


    When it gets hot you get tired and your techniques go So you need to train your overall fitness I think.
     
  3. amleto

    amleto Regular Member

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    When temperature is hotter, shuttle flies faster, not slower!

    This is because the mean distance between particles increases with temperature => the shuttle has to push fewer particles out of the way!
     
    #3 amleto, Aug 22, 2015
    Last edited: Aug 22, 2015
  4. mikescully

    mikescully Regular Member

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    buying the appropriate shuttles help, check the numbers and temperature range, use the right number

    my club organizer always measure the indoor temperature before deciding which number to use, that way it helped the members to always play with proper shuttle speed
     
  5. phihag

    phihag Regular Member

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    As others said, heat makes shuttles faster, not slower. Other environment variables (humidity, air pressure) factor in as well. Simply test the shuttles (see §3 of the laws for how). If they're too slow or too fast, pick another shuttle speed; make sure to bring multiple speeds if you bring your own shuttles. After the game, make a note of temperature and shuttle speed to get a feeling for the right speed. For example, here in Germany, if you're using decent Yonex shuttles (say, AS40), you can usually play speed 3 from September to May and speed 2 from June to August.

    Alternatively, you can also modify the shuttles. Just bend every fourth, every second, or every feather by a little bit. Bending feathers outwards will slow down the shuttle, inwards will speed it up a little bit. Of course, in a real tournament or high-level club game, the referee will determine and test the speed. But even then, it's usually allowed to slow done shuttles if both players agree. If there's no referee, you and your opponent have to agree on a speed.

    In once was umpiring a tournament where bending feathers was not allowed (well, actually it was, but you had to get the referee's explicit permission, which can take a while if you're on the opposite part of the hall). Both players wanted the shuttle slower anyways. They simply pressed their elbow into the shuttle. To my surprise, this works quite well too, although I'm guessing you need to have some experience to consistently modify a shuttle with this method. Since the letter of the referee instructions only mentioned bending feathers by breaking the top, I let it slide. (The referee was fine with that afterwards, so I didn't get in trouble.)

    Tactically, a slow shuttle in singles means that clears get more important, because you don't have to fear playing them out. On lower levels, your opponent may also not be able to play back to the baseline, so a winning tactic is often to clear to the baseline once or twice and then move up to the mid/front court to smash the shuttle.

    Also bear in mind that there is often a mental aspect. The scrub complains about temperature, height and color of the hall, shuttle speed, shuttle flight, incorrect stringing, lucky opponents, audience distractions, prejudiced umpires, blind line judges, draconian/over-tolerant service judges and a bad hotel. When Lin Dan plays under the same conditions, he may not like them, but he'll win anyways.
     
  6. Charlie-SWUK

    Charlie-SWUK Regular Member

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    Or he might not win more recently...

    Anyway what's been said is true, shuttles fly faster in hotter temperatures. Here in the UK I use speed 78s in the summer, and 79s during the winter down on the south coast.

    It is likely a technique or agility issue on your part. There are two types of dropshot, the slow drop to move a player out of position, and the fast drop to attack. I suspect they're playing you to the rear court, and then playing a drop when you haven't moved back into the centre for the next shot.
     
  7. Alex_Xu

    Alex_Xu Regular Member

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    I know that but the thing is that thy use speed 2 in a humid room so ...
     
  8. MSeeley

    MSeeley Regular Member

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    If you go to a place where the shuttle is an illegal speed, and you expect to play badminton (as outlined in the rules of the game), then its actually not possible. You have three options:
    1. Go somewhere else where the shuttle is a legal speed
    2. Do something to make the shuttle faster so it is a legal speed
    3. Stop complaining and change your tactics so that you can win points

    As another poster has written, if the shuttle is very slow, good tactics to use is to put lots of power into clears and keep your opponent on the back line, then move forwards to hit sharp angled (but slow) winners.

    Another option: change your racket to one that has a much lower tension - it will help you with power.

    Good luck
     
  9. ucantseeme

    ucantseeme Regular Member

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    [MENTION=120700]Charlie-SWUK[/MENTION] 79 in the Winter?:eek: What's the temperature of the sports hall? Must be around 13° Celsius? You must have cold winters or a brand which I don't know. For me nearly everything at 77 or 2 works in Summer. And 77/78 (depending on brand) or 3 works fine. I can't imagine how fast 79 flies.
     
  10. Charlie-SWUK

    Charlie-SWUK Regular Member

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    The sportshall I use is completely unheated with 6 glasses roofs. It ends somewhere between 13 and 20C in there. It's been cold enough that I've dropped my racket from my hand seizing up because it's been too cold for me.

    On the contrary, in summer it's a greenhouse. 78 works for most brands (with some like Yehlex going a bit fast). The main shuttles I use are AS40s and Li Ning A300s, and travel at a perfect speed (will hit the doubles line when tested by 2 high standard players).
     
  11. amleto

    amleto Regular Member

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    In the winter 78 is too fast where I play in Reading. In the summer it sails past the far line. 79 would reach the far wall!
     
  12. Charlie-SWUK

    Charlie-SWUK Regular Member

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    78 is too fast?! How warm is your sports hall?!

    Edit: 79 is only during the winter.
     
  13. Carlos (Mijas)

    Carlos (Mijas) Regular Member

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    Good point

    im using a yonex voltric force, with bg65 at not too high tension; trust me the power is not an issue in this case, which made me more confused because i shouldnt have that many problems when hitting the shuttle. Maybe is a hitting thing and i should improve my technique but players less skillful than me and less powerful doesnt seem to have the same problems
     
  14. MSeeley

    MSeeley Regular Member

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    With all due respects, you are complaining about slow shuttles: so power is definitely an issue in this case.

    However, I would suggest there are two realistic explanations. Firstly, test the shuttle properly. Where does it land?

    1. If it lands in the correct place, then actually, the shuttle is not slow - you just think it is. This is usually a trick of the mind, and is usually linked to how the shuttle sounds and its initial flight. This can be very confusing, thinking the shuttle is slow, but its not. You just need to pretend its "normal"... because it actually is fine.

    2. If the shuttle lands short, then it IS a slow shuttle. I don't care what racket or strings you use: if the shuttle is slow, then you will struggle.

    What do you mean by "not too high" a tension? To give you an idea: when I play normally I have roughly 30 lbs tension in my racket, which I judge to be a very high tension. When the shuttles are very slow, I would use something that is around 22lbs tension if I was really struggling - a big difference. Realistically nowadays, I never have a problem as I have plenty of power. But my technique hasn't always been so good, and so I have had to change rackets in the past. Note: on occassions where I had to change racket, I became the only player in the room to not struggle with the shuttles, everyone else thought they were really slow.

    Of course, technique may well be a problem. Maybe you are used to really really fast shuttles, and regular ones seem really slow. However, from what you say that sounds unlikely.

    Good luck!
     
  15. Carlos (Mijas)

    Carlos (Mijas) Regular Member

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    i have played with many shuttles and i can tell you they are slower than normal.

    i cant exactly tell you the tension, it was 1-3kg less than the maximun of my racquet i dont remember. Anyway when using it and touching it, i feel that is the correct "tension". I will test the shuttle today thanks for the advice

    Id like to add something, thinking why slow shuttles ruin my game and whit what all of you shared in this post i think i have come to a conclusion.

    1. No matter how much power i use in my shots i will be on pressure, what do i mean with this? Shuttles are REALLY slow, and my goods shoots becomes ordinary shoots (im a fast player) my smashes, fast dropshots and attacking clears are easily returned by my oponents (my usuals shots).=Solution find the angles .

    2. Watching myself playing i saw that i have the wrong deception for this slow shuttles.
    Ill explain myself, 90% of my deceptions are about delaying; instead of pretending to smash and then make a clear i will pretend to do a dropshot and then the clear. Problem= whit the shuttles that slow my delayed shoots are not that efective, same goes with the smash and almost every shot i play, its my style of game.

    I guess the good thing about this is that if i keep training in this conditions, i would probably erase my worst problem (the angles, sharp shots etc) and learn new deceptives shots.


    Or maybe i got all wrong :rolleyes: , let me see what you think
     
  16. Carlos (Mijas)

    Carlos (Mijas) Regular Member

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    and sorry [MENTION=47032]MSeeley[/MENTION] if it is difficult to understand me, english isnt my best languaje:D
     
  17. Charlie-SWUK

    Charlie-SWUK Regular Member

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    Well, what shuttles are you using?

    As you're in the south of Spain, I'd guess a speed 2 is probably appropriate for where you are, but then not all shuttles are made equal, and some brands end up faster than others.

    You can test the shuttle speed, but I'll be honest, it's not particularly easy to do properly. I get much higher level players than myself to do a test as well to make sure I haven't screwed it up.
     
  18. MSeeley

    MSeeley Regular Member

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    Your english is great. It sounds like you have worked it out for yourself! You didn't change your game style to cope with the shuttles. When the shuttles are "wrong", you will need to choose different shots and use deception in a different way because your "weapons" will be different on that day.

    For example, when the shuttles are slow, I will pretend to smash, and hit an attacking clear instead. When the shuttle are fast, I will pretend to smash, and hit a stop drop instead. Thats because the different shots will give different problems to my opponent - the clear is difficult to return in slow conditions, and the drop shot is dangerous in fast conditions.

    Finally regarding your tension - my point to you is that when the shuttles are very very slow, you do not want your normal tension, you want very very low tension - it will help with power. But anyway, when you test the shuttle you will find out!

    Good luck!
     
  19. Carlos (Mijas)

    Carlos (Mijas) Regular Member

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    Im training in benalmadena
    I cant choose the shuttles, they are always the same; i guess because our sponsor

    I know we have some kind of fridge where we Keep the shuttles

    The shuttles are forza vip i think
     
  20. Carlos (Mijas)

    Carlos (Mijas) Regular Member

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    Thanks man!!
     

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