Does Height Matter In Badminton?

Featured Image: Fauzi Ananta

It might be an old age question, but does height matter in badminton? Does it give you an advantage? When I was younger, I was told that badminton players are tall and lanky and short players didn’t have the right physique to play at the highest level.

However, we have seen players who play at the highest level who are certainly way above the average height of a badminton player, and those who would be considered significantly shorter than the average. There are inherent advantages and disadvantages to being shorter or taller in badminton. What’s important is being able to recognize the advantages and play to those strengths while working hard to overcome the disadvantages that might naturally come as a result of your stature.

Height On The Circuit Right Now

In singles, on average players are not particularly tall. You get some players such as Victor Axelson on one hand (6ft 3′), and on the other Nozomi Okuhara (5ft 1′). Although these are the two extremes in singles, it doesn’t seem to have hampered their ability to win big titles throughout their careers so far. On average, the men tend to be between 5 foot 6 inches – 6 feet and the females between 5 foot 3 inches – 5 foot 7 inches.

In doubles, you get players who are exceptionally tall, such as Mads Pieler Kolding, who is 6ft 7 according to BWF records (but I have heard 6ft 9″ quoted) and players who are much shorter such as Yuta Watanabe (5ft 6″). So again we have players who are polar opposites, that have both achieved much in their careers. On average their height remains very similar to those of their singles counterparts.

In this article, we will look at the relative advantages of being a taller player, followed by the advantages of being a shorter player. As you will see, many of the disadvantages of a shorter player are the taller player’s advantage and vice-versa. Some of these are relevant even at the professional level, and some are more significant at amateur levels.

Advantages Of Being Taller

1. Psychological. A big part of being taller can be the psychological impact it has on your opponent. This might make them more nervous because you appear more imposing, therefore creating tension in their bodies, making them more susceptible to mistakes.

I think we have all been in a position when serving to someone who stands very close to the service line when receiving serve. Many players lose their nerve when serving at this point. Now imagine serving to someone who stands very close and is so tall that they’re literally on top of the net. That’s a pretty powerful weapon before you’ve even played a rally. In amateur leagues and competitions, this might well be a passive advantage, at least initially.

2. Angles. A second advantage is the ability to generate steeper angles. One thing I think we can all agree on is that angles are important in badminton. We often see players jump high into the air to create steep angles (not power) which are more difficult to defend against than flatter smashers. But for taller players, they can take the shuttle much higher than average.

Someone like the aforementioned Mads Pieler Kolding can rain down smashes from over three meters! This steepness is a great advantage in doubles, creating winning opportunities for their partner in the front court. In singles, it can force players to take the shuttle late in their defence and therefore put pressure on their opponent to recover faster for the next shot.

3. Court Coverage And Reach. Taller players are able to cover the court in perhaps fewer strides than a shorter person. In singles, this can be a great advantage as fewer steps could mean greater energy conservation. Shorter players will typically have to run faster/further than their taller counterparts in order to reach a shuttle, for example, if travelling the long diagonal of the court.

Another strength of tall players is their reach. It’s always spectacular when you see players diving across the court in an attempt to retrieve the shuttle. While this was a trademark of such players as Lee Chong Wei and Lin Dan, it’s much rarer that we see taller players doing the same. Even if they are forced to dive, their reach allows them to reach the shuttle a little earlier and not dive fully, therefore helping them recover faster.

4. Serving. Previously, one of the biggest advantages a taller player had was in serving. The old rules used to stipulate below the waist (lowest rib). Taller players had an intrinsic advantage as their waist would naturally be higher than that of a shorter person. Therefore very tall players might be serving at net height! However since the new rule, this advantage has been a little diminished but not entirely, Taller players can basically still serve higher to the 5foot rule than those who are shorter. The advantage of this is that the shuttle doesn’t have to travel upwards towards the net and therefore it is likely to fall earlier once it crosses the net. This makes attacking the serve more difficult in doubles. In singles, there is less pressure on the serve so the advantage is reduced.

Advantages Of Being Shorter

1. Better Defence. I’m not saying all shorter people have a better defense than taller players. However, one disadvantage of being taller which is most often quoted is that body smashes work much better against taller players than shorter players. It can be easier for a shorter player to squat and take the shuttle overhead than taller players. This is particularly true in doubles where the pace of the games requires you to act very quickly. In singles, you might argue that the taller player has the advantage of being able to reach the tramlines easier, and therefore this balances out the two advantages.

2. Lower Cente Of Gravity. This is a key fundamental aspect of all sports. Shorter players have a lower centre of gravity than taller players. Having a low centre of gravity makes it easier to move with speed across the court and also helps to keep you in balance when playing shots. Taller players naturally have a higher centre of gravity. This centre moves as the player moves and changes direction. This makes it more difficult for a taller player to stay in balance as the support structure changes rapidly.

3. Better Net Play. In doubles being a little shorter at the net is likely to be more beneficial. Their racket sits naturally at the right height to intercept faster shuttles and their bodies are protected by the net. Taller players often look awkward at the front of court and it’s also difficult as they must crouch down much further in order to be effective from this position. Although they have a longer reach, when moving from side to side across the net, they may struggle more as they have to manoeuvre their longer limbs in a short period of time and are not as agile as a shorter player.

4. Recovery Time. Watching Lee Chong Wei, Kento Momota or Anthony Ginting, there’s something very obvious about the speed of their recovery. It’s so fast they always seem to have enough time to move to the next shot with minimal effort. Again this is to do with the low centre of gravity they maintain aided by their height. All these players are not particularly tall. Indeed a worthwhile tactic against taller players is to make them twist and turn. Due to their higher centre of gravity they might struggle a little more to turn their body as fast to react to these shots. This throws their balance and therefore makes it difficult to recover.

Conclusion

In general, there are not many players who are excessively tall or short on the world circuit, and those that are, have worked hard to overcome the disadvantages that this has presented. So does height matter in badminton? Whether you’re a taller or shorter player, there are no disadvantages that cannot be overcome with hard work and proper training. So don’t worry about what you cannot change, just enjoy the game and be the best you can be!

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