Badminton is a popular racket sport played throughout the world. A sanctioned Olympic sport, badminton is reported to have originated in ancient Greece over 2,000 years ago. A match is played on a rectangular court split in half by a net. Each player is required to use a racket, and a shuttlecock is used, rather than the more common ball used in most racket sports.
Badminton Court
A single's court is 17 feet wide and 44 feet long. A net that is 5 feet high divides the length of the court in half. Clear white boundary lines are used to determine where service should be taken from, and whether the shuttlecock is in or out of play.
Scoring
A match is decided by which player wins the best two of three games. To win a game a player must be the first to score 15 points. A player does not have to win by two clear points to win the game. Players switch sides after each game. A player must be serving to score a point during a match, winning as a receiver ensures you serve the next point.
Serving
The first service of the game is always made from the right side of the court. Players continue to serve until the opponent wins a point. A player must serve the shuttlecock over the net underarm and from below the waist level. The feet of the serving player must remain in the service court until the shuttlecock is hit over the net. To score a point the service must land in the diagonally opposite service court. A shuttlecock hitting the net will result in a serviced fault.
Rally
A shuttle that lands in fair results in a point for the player who hit it over the net. A shuttlecock that lands on the line of the court is considered in play. A rally will continue until one player fails to keep the ball off the ground in their own court, or hits the shuttlecock and it lands out of play. A rally will be over if the player touches or reaches over the net. The offending player will lose the point. A shuttlecock that hits the net but still passes over to the other side of the court is considered in play.
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