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What separates great badminton doubles players from everyone else? It’s not just smash power, defense, or athleticism. In this video, we break down the hidden concept of rhythm in doubles badminton and why players like Hendra Setiawan can dominate fast exchanges through timing, anticipation, and movement efficiency. Learn how early shuttle contact, mental rhythm, partner coordination, and proactive movement create opportunities to attack and control rallies. Whether you're transitioning from singles to doubles or looking to improve your doubles strategy, this video will help you understand the game at a deeper level and play faster without actually moving faster.
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Show More Show Less View Video Transcript
0:00
If you want to get good at doubles,
0:01
there's one thing you should prioritize
0:03
improving more than anything else.
0:05
Most players focus on the flashy things
0:07
like the explosive smashes and
0:08
incredible defensive reactions.
0:12
Watch any top doubles pair in the world
0:14
and you'll notice something interesting.
0:22
Many viewers will immediately think
0:24
about how much physical and technical
0:25
capability each player has to develop to
0:27
produce the shots and respond to them.
0:30
But when you look closer,
0:32
there's something even more important
0:33
happening underneath all of it
0:35
that fundamentally drives your ability
0:37
to improve at doubles.
0:39
This something is rhythm and more
0:40
specifically your mental rhythm on
0:42
court.
0:44
It is the factor that makes or breaks
0:46
everything else, [music] at least the
0:47
higher level you want to go.
0:49
For those of us who started playing
0:51
badminton by playing singles, you may
0:53
know this feeling very well when first
0:55
getting into doubles.
0:56
You might have been in a situation where
0:58
you get on court playing someone in
1:00
doubles
1:01
that you know you beat in singles
1:03
and then suddenly you lose.
1:06
And you don't just lose,
1:08
you lose by a wide margin.
1:10
Shot quality, skills, power, or even
1:13
partner coordination were never the main
1:15
problems. If we can win against our
1:17
opponents in singles, but we were unable
1:19
to win in doubles, the real problem had
1:21
to do with our mental rhythm on court.
1:24
We say this because things started to
1:25
change when we were advised to try our
1:27
best to hit the shuttle
1:29
before it started to drop as much as we
1:31
could. It's not possible to do it all
1:33
the time, for example,
1:34
a high lift.
1:36
But off of short serves, blocks, and
1:38
drives, this made a huge difference.
1:41
Instead of waiting for the shuttle to
1:42
come to you,
1:43
you must go to the shuttle.
1:45
And that's one of the big reasons in why
1:47
the pros are able to play so much
1:48
faster.
1:54
Unlike singles where shots can
1:55
consistently be taken with your racket
1:57
facing up in the front court and behind
2:00
you in the back court.
2:01
If you do this all the time in doubles,
2:03
you're not going to win
2:05
unless your defense is much better than
2:07
whatever your opponents can produce.
2:09
If you're playing someone at a similar
2:11
level or higher though,
2:13
that's pretty much never the case.
2:15
Thus, the game is really won through
2:17
your ability to produce a loose shot
2:18
from your opponent that you can
2:19
ultimately kill.
2:21
That usually means getting the lift or
2:23
clear
2:24
and the eventual net kill opportunity.
2:27
In many cases, it's okay to actually
2:28
sacrifice shot quality in return for an
2:30
earlier contact point.
2:32
That's why you'll see a lot of these
2:33
brush type of shots in doubles, where
2:35
it's not necessarily a drive,
2:37
nor are you trying to spin the shot
2:39
really tightly to the net.
2:47
We don't doubt that if the pros really
2:49
take their time, they'll be able to net
2:51
roll or play these shots super tight to
2:53
the net every time,
2:55
but that's not the point of playing it.
2:57
You don't want to give your opponent
2:59
time to react, so really any shot that
3:01
gets the shuttle going downward and
3:03
allows you to take an earlier contact
3:05
point to force a faster reaction
3:07
gets the job done.
3:09
Of course, shot quality still matters
3:10
though.
3:12
Many players, including ourselves, had
3:14
right away experienced problems
3:16
where we could no longer control our
3:17
shots as our contact point and movement
3:20
speed changed.
3:22
To improve on our shot quality while
3:23
maintaining the faster rhythm, the key
3:25
was understanding that the game wasn't
3:27
about your pure raw speed [music] and
3:29
strength, but more so where and when you
3:31
move.
3:33
You might have heard the saying slow is
3:34
smooth and smooth is fast.
3:37
What this means in a badminton context
3:38
is that raw speed and reaction does not
3:41
always translate into speed on court.
3:44
Michael McElvey had previously made a
3:46
video titled speed is not fast and it
3:48
makes no sense,
3:50
which explains how speed is more nuanced
3:52
in sports.
3:53
One thing that particularly stands out
3:55
[music] is how he describes speed in
3:57
sport as not just distance over time,
4:00
but also raise the factor of cognitive
4:03
processing.
4:05
Every time you move in a sport like
4:06
badminton, there's a lot to process
4:08
through your brain. What shot is coming
4:10
at you?
4:11
What are you playing in return?
4:14
Forehand, backhand, swing technique,
4:16
footwork. Pros are pros because much of
4:20
this is subconscious and so well
4:22
practiced that you don't need to
4:24
actively think. Shots get played
4:26
instinctively and there is no delay from
4:28
thinking
4:30
which is how they're able to play so
4:31
fast and smoothly. But even among pros
4:34
there are levels.
4:36
The technique is subconscious, but your
4:37
brain still controls all the movements
4:39
by your nervous system.
4:41
If something like your legs are too fast
4:43
or still moving while you're playing
4:44
your next shot,
4:44
>> [music]
4:45
>> that can greatly disturb your ability to
4:47
play the shot.
4:48
Especially if you're not practiced in
4:50
those scenarios. This is where the idea
4:52
of slow is smooth and smooth is fast
4:54
comes in.
4:56
And the perfect player to study for this
4:58
is Hendra Setiawan.
5:01
Hendra Setiawan is fast,
5:03
but not fast and strong by most people's
5:05
traditional definitions.
5:07
He's the oldest badminton player to ever
5:09
win a world championship at 35 years
5:11
old.
5:13
But it's not because of his physical.
5:15
Yet he has no shortage of highlights
5:17
showing his rapid exchanges at the net
5:19
as a front court player.
5:21
Where players are often known for their
5:22
fast movements.
5:25
The reason is because Hendra Setiawan
5:26
moves at the right time.
5:28
What you'll notice from Hendra Setiawan
5:30
and numerous top pro players is that
5:32
they often preemptively move even before
5:35
their opponent has even swung their
5:36
racket.
5:37
Sometimes they'll move a little toward
5:39
where they anticipate their own shot to
5:40
go as they hit, too.
5:48
It's not just on your own shots, either.
5:50
You can and should often do it in
5:52
response to your partner's shots, too.
5:54
And this is something we'll talk a
5:55
little more next with the idea of
5:57
improving partner coordination. These
5:59
anticipatory steps are crucial because
6:00
they allow the player to preemptively
6:03
get in position. So that when the shot
6:05
actually comes,
6:07
you're not trying to control so many
6:08
movements at once.
6:12
You can just think of it this way.
6:15
Try sending a text message on your phone
6:16
standing still,
6:18
walking, jogging, and then sprinting.
6:21
The faster you get, the harder it gets
6:23
to send a text.
6:25
It's the same in badminton. The shuttle
6:26
becomes extra hard to control the faster
6:28
you have to move.
6:29
But if you are preemptively moving and
6:31
already there when the opponent's return
6:33
comes,
6:34
it's much easier to play.
6:36
You don't have to exert as much force
6:38
just to get to the shuttle in the first
6:40
place and lose control of your racket.
6:43
In fact, players like Hendra Setiawan
6:45
are so [music] good because by the time
6:46
their opponents are hitting the shuttle
6:47
back, they're already standing still
6:50
ready for the shot.
6:51
>> [cheering]
6:51
>> On the note of preemptively moving,
6:53
this is also extremely helpful in
6:55
creating nonverbal cues to your partner.
6:58
Many doubles players already know the
6:59
front and back and side-to-side
7:01
rotations, and they'll know [music] that
7:02
front and back is attack, while
7:04
side-to-side is generally for defense.
7:07
In game, however, this rotation can
7:10
often break down,
7:11
and you might even experience things
7:13
like racket clashing as both of you go
7:15
for the same shot
7:16
or
7:17
hesitate at the same time.
7:20
You can't prevent these situations 100%,
7:22
[music] but it makes a big difference if
7:24
one or the other begins preemptively
7:26
moving a little bit.
7:28
If your partner starts moving forward,
7:30
then naturally you should start moving
7:31
back a little and vice versa to cover
7:33
for each other.
7:35
This is also why a lot of badminton
7:36
doubles pairs tend to have a playmaker
7:39
and one that generally follows the
7:41
rhythm of the playmaker.
7:43
The playmaker can make the game really
7:44
easy to play as their initial movements
7:47
will essentially dictate where the other
7:48
partner moves.
7:53
Over the next few weeks as well, we'll
7:54
be adding more and more doubles data
7:56
into our app. Soon, you'll be able to
7:58
compare your own gameplay against
7:59
players like Hendra Setiawan and have AI
8:01
deliver weekly insights based on your
8:03
gameplay.
8:08
When we first started playing doubles,
8:10
we thought the answer was simple.
8:12
Just take your single skill and put it
8:14
into a doubles game.
8:16
Those skills still all mattered,
8:18
but the game felt rushed.
8:20
We were constantly trying to catch up to
8:21
the rally. Opportunities appeared and
8:23
disappeared before we could take
8:25
advantage of them.
8:26
Even when we knew what shot we wanted to
8:28
play,
8:29
we often weren't quite in the right
8:31
position to execute it.
8:33
It took us years to understand why.
8:36
The best doubles players seem to have a
8:37
different rhythm on court.
8:40
They take the shuttle earlier. They
8:41
begin preparing for the next shot before
8:43
their opponent has even hit. And by the
8:45
time the shuttle comes back, they're
8:47
already balanced and ready to play
8:49
again.
8:50
That's why someone like Hendra Setiawan
8:51
can still thrive in some of the fastest
8:53
exchanges in badminton,
8:55
despite being much older than many of
8:57
his opponents
8:58
>> [music]
8:58
>> and in physically worse shape. His game
9:01
is built around timing, anticipation and
9:03
understanding the flow of the rally.
9:05
So, if there's one thing we hope you
9:07
take away from this video,
9:09
it's to start paying attention to
9:10
rhythm.
9:11
Watch when players move, not just where
9:13
they move, how early they take the
9:15
shuttle and how one player's movement
9:17
influences their partner's next
9:18
movement.
9:19
Because once you start noticing those
9:21
patterns,
9:22
doubles starts making a lot more sense.
9:25
The rallies will actually start to feel
9:26
slower but smoother because you're
9:28
moving more in sync with your partner.
9:31
And instead of feeling like you're
9:32
chasing the game,
9:34
it starts to feel like you're part of
9:35
it.
9:37
If you guys liked this video, make sure
9:38
to hit the like and subscribe buttons so
9:41
you don't miss out on future content.
9:43
And as always, thanks for watching.
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