Badminton | How to hit a powerful smash in badminton

Badminton smash is considered the most powerful shot in badminton. Want to improve and smash harder? Here are 3 easy ways to get better at smash!

If you are really a keen and passionate badminton player, you might know that it's far more than just hitting the shuttlecock back and forth the net. Apart from all the rules and laws, there is a super cool technique on how to hit harder in badminton and win any game, badminton smash. Add the power and brutality into your play and smash it off to the win.

Smash basics

There are five main shots in a badminton play. A serves, smashes, clears, drives and drops. A badminton smash technique is the most potent and powerful shot of the game. Mere, serve or hits are not going to take you anyway, rather than boosting your health. Played both from forehand and back and side, there is hardly any defense for badminton smash technique.

So, how to hit a smash in badminton?

You have to jump up into the air and smash the shuttle cock hard, keeping in mind the angle and the landing position, which is meant to be inside the court. You may ask how to hit harder in badminton? The smash should be shot directly, with full pace downward to your opponent’s court. Better done when the cock is high up in the air, so that the player can hit it harder and with the right angle downwards. It is hard to defend because of its pace and downward angle. A brilliant strategy to make the shot, a super hard and a pain for your opponent is to aim it right towards his/her upper torso, leaving him in the pain to catch his senses.

To add on to your success, a few tips on how to hit a powerful smash in badminton are here for your help.

You have to extend your arm in midair to reach the shot, while so, make sure you utilize your thumb, shoulder and wrist completely.

Take a long deep breath while smashing it, and release your whole stress midair while hitting it. This gives you more power and energy. Hit the cock when it is at the highest angle for a smooth and deep downward landing.

You should move faster towards the shuttlecock to get the shot on fire, in professional badminton terms they call it, ‘injection of pace’.

Largely there are three ways when asked how to hit a smash in badminton in terms of executing a badminton smash technique, Forehand, Backhand and Jumping smash. To fire in here are three ways on how to hit a smash in badminton step by step for beginners.

Forehand smash technique

A forehand smash is an overhead smash that a player hits with all the tempo downwards. If you are a good baller or know how to hit harder or other ball games with a pretty good pace and angle, then yes, this smash is your technique to win in badminton. It’s almost akin to throwing a ball straight. Few badminton smash tips for the forehand smashes are important, because you may think it’s easy as a prick, but never, every angle and posture matters. It is a pain for your opponent to hit it back, but be in your shoes to answer a shot back at any moment.

How To Hit A Forehand Smash In Badminton:

First and foremost, tip is to raise your non-racket hand and point it above your chin. This is highly crucial, for a super angled shot. This might sound irrelevant for you, but No! it has an earth shaking part to play in the direction and pace of your shot.

You should shift your weight on to your rear foot, to maintain the balance. This can also help you to track the exact angle downwards saving you from a self-shot, or foul play.

Straighten your elbows and swing the racket with a good fly. Keep in mind to keep shuffling your racket foot forward and knees should be slightly bent.

The forehand grip is vitally important. You must be on your toes ready to hit a forehand smash at every single moment.

Backhand smash

This badminton smash is a tough and perfectly offensive shot. But it’s a tough nut to crack, even experts still abide from using it, unless it is necessary. But it is important to be aware of the shot and its technique, to work it on.

How To Hit A Backhand Smash In Badminton:

Getting the back hand grip is extremely important. But it’s not as easy as it seems. The racket should smoothly flow from forehand to backhand grip, effortlessly, keeping in mind all other swings, angles and shots. So that means you have to open up all your four senses!

It is cardinal to choose the right moment carefully. Unless and until you are sure that a forehand shot or any other shot doesn’t suffice, even if you think you have mastered how to hit a backhand smash in badminton, never take the risk of a back hand smash. It is hard for your opponent to swing it back, but it is as hard as that for you too, to smash it at the right pace and right angle.

Turn your body as though your back faces the net. This turning should be done within a matter of a few seconds and no time should be wasted in that.

Unlike the forehand smash where the weight of the body is balanced by the rare foot, here the weight is balanced by the racket foot. It is tremendously important to maintain the weight balance, because everything in life works on balance!

The racket should be overhead, while the racket head should be pointing down. It is a twisted posture to imbibe, but sweat and practice always produce sweet fruits.

What is important is your presence of mind and pace. You have to get the grip, the moment it strikes you, without a second thought. The faster the grip, the more the power which you execute the smash. Like the smash it is equally important to return smoothly after hitting it for the next shot. That is the entire thing should be flicking motion.

Never dare to do a full power smash unless you are hardly confident about your angles.

Jumping smash technique

Jump up high and smash it like a fire gun, that’s what jumping smash is. This is the best way to release your suppressed emotion assuming that the shuttlecock is the one thing you are angry upon. (not me, but according to psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud). But never make it so hard that smashing actually smashes it apart!

How To Hit A Jumping Smash In Badminton:

Timing is highly pivotal in jumping smash. You have to act , prepare and react quickly within seconds. This gives the opponent very less time to have a glimpse of their reaction.

‘Injection of Pace’ or the closeness of you and the shuttlecock is predominant to act quickly with full fletched power and energy. The higher the cock, the faster you go, the harder the hit is.

A forehand grip can suffice for your jumping smash, helping you to maintain a good grip and balance.

While jumping your body becomes tight, but you should loosen your body and maintain a firm stance to give back a faster and more powerful return.

Your focus should always be on the shuttle, once you jump up keep your legs straight and knees slightly bent, stretch your racket harm as far as you can for a tempo shot. The non-racket arm should coordinate and must be at the level of your ribs. While midair, the non-racket hand should be kept sideways and then straighten it to the elbows.

Drive downwards with your racket foot, for a smooth and energetic jump by deeply inhaling in, and exhaling while smashing.

While landing keep your racket foot further forward to keep the balance, because there is not even a second to be wasted. You must always be alert for the next powerful shot.

Focus and accuracy are deeply paramount factors. You must always pre-calculate the angles while jumping so that the landing is accurately inside the service court and angled downwards. The accuracy with which the shot is done also matters, because your opponent should be in a tight position to reply back. These are three ways on how to hit a smash in badminton. One can surely improvise it adhering to the strict rules and techniques according to their comfortability and presence of mind.

Warm reminder

A badminton smash is thus not an easy breezy technique to imbibe, but needs intense practice and training. Hitting the shuttle hard as that, doesn’t make you a pro player, what you need is the patience, focus and exact accuracy to aim at the right shot at the right moment. One common tactic which most of the smash player’s use is to disguise the shot. It’s just like how you prank your mom or teachers, as if you are doing something but in reality, you may be doing the exact opposite thing. This can be a trick to ward off your opponents focus to another spot, while you smash it to the other. But this doesn’t always work, because world is full of twisted minds! Badminton smash is a technique which needs high energy and enthusiasm, this can drain up your energy easily for the entire play. So it is crucial that you should use it wisely whenever it is highly required. Never use it somewhere, were you can survive with a low shot, because saving you energy for the entire session is very important. Practice badminton smash, not smashing hard, but smash it up with full power.