INTRODUCTION

Badminton is a racquet sport played using racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are “singles” (with one player per side) and “doubles” (with two players per side). Badminton is often played as a casual outdoor activity in a yard or on a beach; formal games are played on a rectangular indoor court. Points are scored by striking the shuttlecock with the racquet and landing it within the other team’s half of the court.
 
Each side may only strike the shuttlecock once before it passes over the net. Play ends once the shuttlecock has struck the floor or ground, or if a fault has been called by the umpire, service judge, or (in their absence) the opposing side.
 
The shuttlecock is a feathered or (in informal matches) plastic projectile that flies differently from the balls used in many other sports. In particular, the feathers create much higher drag, causing the shuttlecock to decelerate more rapidly. Shuttlecocks also have a high top speed compared to the balls in other racquet sports. The flight of the shuttlecock gives the sport its distinctive nature, and in certain languages the sport is named by reference to this feature (e.g., German Federball, literally feather-ball).
 
The game developed in British India from the earlier game of battledore and shuttlecock. European play came to be dominated by Denmark but the game has become very popular in Asia, with recent competitions dominated by China. In 1992, badminton debuted as a Summer Olympic sport with four events: men’s singles, women’s singles, men’s doubles, and women’s doubles;mixed doubles was added four years later. At high levels of play, the sport demands excellent fitness: players require aerobic stamina, agility, strength, speed, and precision. It is also a technical sport, requiring good motor coordination and the development of sophisticated racquet movements involving much greater flexibility in the wrist than some other racquet sports.
 
HISTORY OF BADMINTON

ORIGIN

Badminton is derived directly from the game “poona,” which was played by British army officers stationed in India in the 1860s. The Bath Badminton Club was established in Bath, England, in 1877 and introduced new rules to the game. The formation of the Badminton Association of England (BAE) in 1893 marked a significant step in standardizing the rules and regulations of the sport. The first All England Open Badminton Championships, considered the world’s first badminton tournament, were held in 1899. These developments laid the foundation for badminton’s global expansion.

The International Badminton Federation (now the Badminton World Federation [BWF]) was formed on July 5, 1934, as the sport’s world governing body, and its first world championships were held in 1977. A number of regional, national, and zonal badminton tournaments are held in several countries. The best known of these is the All-England Championships. The BWF classifies its tournaments into four grades to organize competitions based on prestige, ranking points, and prize money. Grade 1 tournaments represent the highest level of competition in the BWF tournament structure. These prestigious events attract top-ranking players from around the globe. The tournaments under this grade are the Olympic Games, BWF World Championships, and BWF World Tour Finals. Other well-known international tournaments include the Thomas Cup (donated 1939) for men’s team competition and the Uber Cup (donated 1956) for women’s team competition

HISTORY OF BADMINTON
 

ICONIC INDIAN BADMINTON PLAYERS OVER THE YEARS

Prakash Padukone

Prakash Padukone was probably the first superstar in the history of badminton in India. Padukone was the first Indian to win the prestigious All England Open Badminton Championships in 1980 and reach No. 1 in the men’s badminton world rankings.
 
He was also India’s first Commonwealth Games gold medallist in badminton, winning the men’s singles event in 1978. The ace shuttler also holds several other accolades, including a bronze at the 1983 World Badminton Championships and a gold in the 1981 World Cup in Singapore.
 

PV Sindhu

Five years younger than Saina Nehwal, PV Sindhu has taken world badminton by storm and went a step higher on the podium after Nehwal’s bronze with a women’s singles silver at the Rio 2016 Games. In 2019, she became the first Indian-ever to win a gold medal at the BWF World Championships. PV Sindhu also became the first Indian woman to win two medals at the Olympics after she bagged a bronze at Tokyo 2020.
 
PV Sindhu has been extremely consistent at the World Championships and has also won two silvers and two bronze medals in the tournament in addition to the landmark gold. Like Saina Nehwal, PV Sindhu has also been mentored by Pullela Gopichand.
 

Saina Nehwal

One of Pullela Gopichand’s star pupils, Saina Nehwal is India’s first-ever Olympic medallist in badminton. Nehwal won the bronze in the London 2012 Olympics women’s singles event. She is also the only Indian woman to be ranked No. 1 in the world, reaching the summit in 2015.

 

Pullela Gopichand

Mentored by Prakash Padukone, Pullela Gopichand took over his teacher’s mantle in the 90s and early 2000s. Gopichand won the All England in 2001 and etched his name in Indian history of badminton.
 

Kidambi Srikanth

Kidambi Srikanth has been the top men’s badminton player in India since Pullela Gopichand retired. Srikanth has six BWF Superseries and three BWF Grand Prix victories under his belt and was ranked the No. 1 men’s player in the world in 2018.
 
He’s the only Indian men’s shuttler since Prakash Padukone to be ranked top. In 2021, Kidambi Srikanth became the first Indian man to win a silver medal at the badminton world championships. He was also a member of the historic Thomas Cup-winning Indian badminton team in 2022.
 
 
 
 

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