strategem
A showdown of every possible tactics in badminton. ;)Never have I seen such a vast exhibition of plays and tactics on one court before. All three of my friends demonstrated distinct yet equally powerful strokes and smashes that it left me amazed. It was truly a beautiful game. Seldom do I get the chance to pit myself against such talent. Heh.
It was a last minute decision to include my friends. Initially it was just my church friend, nicol, and myself. Then my law friend, jason, suddenly said he could make it. So I scrambled to find a fourth player, and thought of my hc classmate, mh, since he had mentioned in a previous class outing that he was interested. So there we have it - three of my friends of different ages, different schools, and (as I was about to discover) very diverse types of play. Apprehension gripped me in the beginning at the thought of putting together friends from uncommon social groups, but I forget that badminton is a universal game. :)
I was very used to nicol's style of play, which consists chiefly of smashes and high, farback shots such that jason's frequent dropshots took me by surprise. I literally had to empty my mind and refill it with jason's play in order to anticipate with some degree of accuracy where the shuttlecock was heading. Didn't had much of a chance to spar with mh, but his backhand was not too bad.
Doubles. And sad to say, I'm the weak link. :( Any of my friends who doubled up with me lost. :( But hey, give the girl a chance! ;p This was the part where the true game began. I finally understood what forward-backward play, use of space, and covering your partner's ass when he can't get the shuttlecock means. The tacit understanding between the two players must transcend verbal communication in order to create a most delightful game. :) There were quite a number of good rallies at some point.
Playing with higher standard has undoubtedly revealed glaring flaws in my play, but it has also improved my agility and reaction time. I asked jason what my greatest flaw was in badminton, and he said while I was good at returning the shuttlecock, I don't appear to plan where it was going. Some strategy ought to be involved when returning. I agree wholeheartedly. Many a times the shuttlecock came hurtling at me with such speed (especially when it's a smash) that I count myself good at just being able to hit it over.
I daresay this was the most highly-tactical game I've ever played. And I loved and enjoyed every single moment of it. I only wish that subsequent games could be as riveting and mind-blowing as this. My muscles have been stretched beyond its wildest comprehension.
posted by solitude @ 8:55 PM
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