Would you please think about answers to the following questions:
- What are the five most important things a player must have to win?
- What will be the order of importance of these five, ranked from 1 to 5?
- What reasons determine this order?
Please take 5 minutes to consider your answers before I share mine.
My answers to the questions are as follows, along with the order of importance:
- Attitude/Personality
Imagine a tiger in the jungle and a deer. - Tactics/Intelligence
- Fitness
- Movement Skills
- Hitting Skills
Reasons for the order:
- If a player moves well but has poor hitting skills, the player will lose. This is common in U11 and U13.
- If a player is very fit but lacks movement skills, the player will be slow on court and waste a lot of energy. This is often seen in U13.
- If a player has hitting skills and footwork skills but no fitness, the player cannot maintain these skills throughout the match and will lose. This typically occurs in U15 and U17.
- If a player has hitting skills, footwork skills, and fitness but no tactics/intelligence, the player cannot compete at a high level. The player may move quickly and have endurance but will hit to the wrong spots, resembling a very powerful machine-like robot on the court. This is common in U17.
- If a player has all the above but lacks attitude and personality, they will never be number one. To me, the badminton court is like a jungle. The tiger or lion is the king of the jungle not just because they are powerful, but because their natural instinct is to be the winner. Imagine a deer that is twice as powerful as a tiger—no one would imagine the deer beating the tiger. To be number one in the badminton “jungle,” a player must have a winner’s personality and a never-lose attitude. This will distinguish the number one player from the rest.
Learning footwork and improving fitness are crucial aspects for a player to become outstanding in the later stages. Without gaining fitness and advanced footwork skills, it is not possible for a player to reach a high level.
This class is designed to improve fitness, strength, and footwork skills. To join the class, please contact Coach Lee at coachleeljbbc@gmail.com. We need to evaluate your current level of fitness and footwork skills.
When: Every Saturday, 4-6 PM
Fees: $20 per hour
Instructor: Coach Lee
Payment: 4-month commitment
Note: No shuttlecock work, member only