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What is a flick serve in badminton/shuttlecock?

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In badminton, what exactly is a flick? In badminton, a flick is a lift to the backcourt performed with a powerful forehand and finger movement. The flick serve is the most common type of flick in badminton, and it’s mostly used for doubles serves.

Now that we’ve gotten the quick answer out of the way, let’s clarify a few points and learn a little more about the flick serve.

What is a flick serve? The detailed answer

A flick in badminton is a lift to the back court with an explosive forehand and finger movement, as I previously stated. In badminton, the purpose of the flick is for the striker to deceive the opponent into thinking the shot will be a net shot.

Boy with racket and cork

As a result, until a few seconds before hitting the shuttle, flick shots follow the same steps as net shots. At that point, the striker uses his forearm to make an explosive movement while gripping the handle tightly.

Instead of a net shot, the striker can surprise the opponent with a shot to the back court with this movement.

Is there a difference between a flick and a lift?

These two names are used interchangeably in other online resources. They are, however, completely different for me. As previously stated, a flick entails an explosive movement at the last possible moment, with the main element being surprise.

When it comes to lifts, the most important factor is not surprise. The majority of the time, the shot’s precision is more important. Furthermore, a lift involves the entire arm. Last but not least, a lift’s movement is not known as very much explosive.

In badminton, what is a flick serve?

The most common flick shot is the flick serve, which is mostly used in doubles. Because it is performed with the backhand, this serve is also known as the backhand flick serve.

In one of the following scenarios, the flick serve is used to surprise your opponent:

  • Your opponent is putting too much pressure on the low serve.
  • Your low serve isn’t great, and you’d rather defend the point than lose it after the reception.
  • The one you’re serving has a much weaker attack than the other, and you’re trying to take advantage of that.

How to do a flick serve?

Let’s have a look now at how to perform a flick serve.

Step 1: Get into a ready position

When performing a low serve, the ready position must be the same as when performing a high serve. As a result, your racket leg should be slightly forward, while your non-racket leg should be slightly backwards. Your arms should form an O shape in front of your body, with the racket and shuttle in front of you.

In your current position, you must be at ease. If you’re too tight, the shot won’t flow properly, and you’ll be more likely to make a mistake.

Step 2: Hit the shuttle, rotate your forearm and generate power with your fingers

This is the most important step. Instead of hitting the shuttle with a low serve, you lift the shuttle to the back of the court by rotating your forearm and using your finger power. To maximise the power of your fingers, you must first loosen your grip before striking, then tighten it explosively.

Is it legal to serve a flick?

In badminton, the flick serve is legal as long as you follow the rules and don’t make any errors while doing so. Let’s take a quick look at the rules you’ll need to follow and the mistakes you might make.

Flick serve rules and faults in badminton

The following are the main guidelines to follow when performing a flick serve:

  • You cannot stop a service movement once it has started
  • To begin, you must strike the shuttle’s base.
  • When hitting the shuttle, the shuttle must be below waist height.
  • While serving, the racket head and shaft must be pointing down.

Let’s have a look at each one separately to see what things to keep an eye on when performing a flick serve.

You cannot stop a service movement once it has started

The movement of service must be continuous. When performing a flick serve, however, some people tend to stop in the middle of the movement to perform the flick. This will always get you into trouble, and if you’re playing in a tournament with good umpires, you’ll almost certainly get a fault if you try it.

Man serving cork

To begin, you must strike the shuttle’s base

With all of the backhand serves, this can be a difficult one for beginners. As a first point of contact with your racket, you must always hit the shuttle’s base. Because you are changing the way you serve when doing a flick serve, this can be a problem for beginners. With practice, however, you will not even consider it.

When hitting the shuttle, the shuttle must be below waist height

When serving a flick serve, this is probably the most common error. You must be careful not to bring the shuttle any higher when performing the flick serve because the backhand low serve is already quite high in order to maximize the shot.

When trying to perform the flick serve, some players unconsciously move the shuttle and thus the point of contact up to give the shot enough power. This is going to get you in a lot of trouble.

While serving, the racket head and shaft must be pointing down

When serving, both the racket head and the shaft must be pointing down. When performing a flick serve, be careful not to place them too horizontally, as this could result in a fault.

Conclusion

And with that, we’ve come to the end of this article. Let me know if you have any doubts about the badminton flick shot in the comments section below.