How to Grip a Badminton Racket

How you interact with your badminton racket it is one of the vital points in badminton: the grip, the angle you hold it, the tension, and the swing are but a few points that you must first keep in mind, but will become second-nature to you as you practice.

As this article will deal with how you should grip a badminton racket, I will not discuss how to choose a good racket into good depth, but better have a racket that is a solid, one piece than a cheap racket in which the shaft and head of the racket are connected by a separate piece because it will help with balance and stability. You can read more on how to choose the right badminton racket for you in our guide here.

The Different Types of Grips

The Standard Grip

The very basic interaction with the racket is how to hold it. The standard grip is reminiscent of aiming a gun; as you point the racket forward while holding it naturally like a stick, the index finger should be separated from the rest of the fingers about one or two fingers’ width. That index finger would be farther up the handle of the racket, where the trigger would be if this had been the gun.

The racket head should be perpendicular to the ground at this time, so the thin side of the racket is facing you. I call this grip the “X” grip because your hand in this grip looks like the letter for “X” in American Sign Language except that you are holding a racket, and it also reminds you that the racket head and ground should be perpendicular. When in this position, you should be able to lift your pinky finger just fine without and disturbance in the racket’s balance.

The Backhand Grip

The backhand grip is the “Thumbs up” grip. When holding the racket pointing straight out in front of you, you should be gripping the handle with your thumb pressing against the handle’s flat side. The racket head should be parallel to the ground; that is, you should be able to see the strings facing you. You should be able to push the racket down with your thumb.

Changing Between Grips

Changing quickly between these two grips is important during game in order to broaden the range of proper moves that you can use while on the spot. To practice, hold the racket in the forehand X grip with the racket perpendicular to the ground. Slide your index finger down and stick your thumb out while turning the racket to be parallel to the ground to change to the backhand grip. Do vice-versa fingering to change back to forehand grip while turning the racket back to being perpendicular to the ground. This exercise can be done anywhere as long as you have a racket and you have space in front of you, so you can even do sitting or standing, like maybe while watching TV. Have fun, and practice hard!