Selecting the best badminton racket is likely to be just about the most important buying decision a badminton player can make. Many players will probably select the wrong racket to cater to their particular game and current skill level regardless of their skill level.
The market is saturated with many brand names, Yonex, Victor, Ashaway, Carlton, Head, and Wilson, to name but a few. The brands recommend you buy the latest racket their sponsored badminton superstars are currently using to great success.
However, you must choose the best racket to match your individual technique and standard of play. Many of today’s champions are successful because they have great strength, technique, and physical fitness developed over many years of hard training and dedication. Hopefully, you will aspire to be one of these future champions.
If you visit some of the well-known badminton forums, you will read comments like, What gives? I just got the racket that the world’s top player uses to hit those powerful smashes, but now that I have played a couple of games with it, my wrist and forearm are hurting me so much just trying to hit those big smash as he does. What gives? Well, I will tell you what gives.
You are not a professional badminton player. You have probably purchased just about the most expensive badminton racket, the Yonex Voltric Z Force, and it is far too heavy and rigid for your game style. When making a racket choice, you must try and be as honest as you can about your physical capability and pick a badminton racket that matches that capability along with your skillset.
There are so many racket brands, and technologies within the market to choose from it can be daunting when attempting to select the right racket. Hopefully, by using our guide, you will be better positioned to decide on the best choice for you.
A good badminton racket allows a player to carry out his playing level fully. When purchasing a racket, you should consider all aspects of the racket from technical type, material, string, workmanship, style, performance, brands, and price.
3 Steps To Choosing The Best Badminton Racket
Badminton players can mainly be placed within three categories.
- Beginner
- Intermediate
- Advanced
The Beginner Player
The best badminton rackets for the beginner player tend to be of lighter weight and have a flexible shaft which will allow the beginner that bit more control. The lightest badminton racket is usually in the range of 84 grams.
These types of rackets generally have a low balance point. In effect, the racket feels light in the head. There are many good badminton rackets to choose from at a reasonable price. The Ashaway Superlight T5 SQ is a good choice, as is the Carlton Ignite Fusion.
The Intermediate Player
Good badminton rackets for the intermediate player tend to have a firmer shaft and a bit more weight in the racket. The intermediate player might want the best badminton racket for smashing and that bit more power in their play.
These rackets would have a higher balance point and feel that bit heavier in the head. This one from Ashaway, the Viper XT750, is a good choice and is just about the best badminton racket for intermediate players you can find. This Yonex Arcsaber 6 racket is also one worth having.
The Advanced Player
Racket choices for the advanced badminton player tend to have rigid shafts and high balance points, making these types of rackets head heavy.
Advanced players tend to lean towards the best badminton racket for smashing and also, at the same time, the best badminton racket for utilizing power play. Advanced players tend to be county and international level.
This Yonex Arcsaber Z Slash racket which is about the most expensive badminton racket you can buy today, is a firm favorite with hard-hitting attacking players.
Power players seem to favor the Victor Thruster TK8000, which is a good choice for big-hitting players who love to power down their smashes. The Victor Thruster is just about the best badminton racket for power that you can buy.
The fundamental conditions when choosing a racket are included:
- Types of racket frames
- String tension
- Shaft stiffness / flexibility
- Grip size
- The balance point of the weight
Types of Racket Frames
If you look at most of the rackets available in the market, you will notice that most are manufactured with an isometric shape. If you don’t like the isometric design, you can still choose the other 2 types of rackets: rounded square and traditional oval frame.
The traditional oval head is built with a smaller sweet spot. The design of this racket head can offer you a higher force compare to isometric.
While the rounded square head has a larger sweet spot with lower force compared to isometric.
Which racket frame you should choose actually depends on you. If you do not have a special focus and requirement for the sweet spot, then the isometric head is actually the most suitable one, especially for beginners.
String Tension
Different rackets are designed to hold different string tensions. However, those rackets that cannot hold high tension don’t mean that they are not good.
This is due to each player is having different tension preferences. For my playing experience, I think high or low tension will have its own advantages during gameplay.
Normally string high tension is from 27 lbs and above. Generally, the higher the tension, the shorter the time for the shuttle to stay on the stringbed, and the shuttle bounce speed will be fast.
If you do not have good arm strength, you should avoid using high tension strings.
On the other hand, string with lower tension is from 20 lbs and below. The time for the shuttle to stay on the stringbed is longer, and the shuttle bounce speed will be slow. But a lower tension string will give you better control.
So when choosing a racket, ensure to choose those rackets that can withstand the string tensions you want.
Racket Stringing
People will buy most rackets pre-strung. The supplier will string them to the manufacturer’s recommended tension. They will usually string them in the synthetic gut. If you are a player who plays competitively, you will probably want to get a restring not long after purchasing your racket.
This is because manufacturing stringing is not as good or as tight as you will find carried out by your local restringing professional. Your local stringer will usually string in Ashaway, or Yonex strings are the two most popular and quality brands.
Shaft Stiffness/Flexibility
When choosing for your racket, you need to pay great attention to the shaft stiffness and flexibility.
In reality, the shaft stiffness and racket string have the same theory. The stiffer the shaft, the force for you to do the shot will be greater. Therefore, you will need to exert more arm strength when playing the shot.
On the other hand, you will not need arm strength to shoot a racket with a flexible shaft.
Thus, my suggestion is that for beginners or players with weaker arm strength, you should not buy a racket with a stiff shaft.
Grip Size
The smaller the grip, the heavier the racket head. In opposite, the bigger the grip, the lighter the racket head. Choosing different grip sizes will affect the overall racket feel.
You may try to adjust the grip while playing, and you will feel the different grip for different rackets.
Weight Balance Point
The balance point of a racket can be categorized as high, medium, and low. Personally, I prefer the medium balance point because this type of racket is good for playing a balance in offense and defense.
A racket with a higher balance point will have a heavier head. This racket is for offensive players. It can give the player greater force when hitting the shuttle.
Racket with a lower balance point. It will focus the weight on the grip. So the racket head will be lighter. The swing speed will be fast. We will talk more about this later.
Relationship Between Weight, Balance, Shaft Flexibility, and Your Playing Style.
Having a good grasp of the relationship between these 4 features will help you pick the right racket to play the game. If you didn’t get it right, you might end up buying the wrong racket, which may cause you to waste your money on the racket that is not what you are looking for.
When considering what type of racket you can buy, you first need to know your type of player. This is because each racket is unique and is catered to a specific playing style.
Your Playing Style
If you are an offense-oriented player who needs much power when playing on the court, you should choose the rackets with a higher balance point. These types of rackets can offer you higher balance points as they have a heavier head and can offer you a great deal of striking.
If you are the ultra-sharp offense-oriented player in which you smash aggressively and defend solidly, then you should go for the racket that can help you shift from offense play to defense play very fast. This type of racket is featured with a highly elastic shaft that can help you produce fast swing speeds. The weight of the racket is also lighter.
If you are a quick hand player, you can choose the lightweight racket to do fast play. You can use this type of racket to react very fast and lay decisively.
These types of rackets are feature flex shafts and frames with lightweight, which make the badminton rackets more active.
If you are the control-focused type of player, you should choose the racket that allows you to perform multi-control.
The racket can offer you a strong offense, defense, and control. They build the racket with flexible shafts that features a vast head and large sweet spots.
If you are a balanced and well-rounded style player, you can choose the racket that can offer you solid offense and defense.
These types of rackets have the balance of the weight with the shaft. The racket can help you to perform a good power shot and frontcourt play.
It is hard for you to find a racket with the same weight, balance, and flexibility.
How Do I Find The Appropriate Racket
The key to picking a good racket is to test it out and feel it by yourself.
You need to try out different rackets of different weights and see if they are a good fit for your body and your feel.
Many players love the feel of the racket when they are trying in the sports store, but when they buy it and bring it to play on the court, only they find out that the racket is actually not the one they are looking for.
Therefore, before buying a racket, you need to test it out and see how your shoulder, elbow, arm, wrist react. Then only you can know whether the racket is the right one for you.
It would help if you bought the racket from a store that allows you to do a demonstration. Then you can be sure that you won’t wrongly buy a racket that is not fit for you.
You can also try the different rackets in the store and do some different swings. You can move your body a little with appropriate footwork and see how you feel with the racket until you get the one that you have a good feel with it.
You need to pay attention to that you need to try the racket that has the string attached to the racket. Don’t swing a racket without string, as you may get the racket that is not well fit for you after putting on the string. It can carry more weight, and you may not get a good feel for it anymore.
Once you know the weight balance and the racket length that fits you, it is easy to choose the ideal racket that suits you well.
Another thing you need to consider is whether you are playing more on singles or doubles.
Singles players normally will go for stiffer rackets since they tend to do a lot of offensive shots. At the same time, doubles players like to choose more flex rackets because they are more focused on the fast defense shots.
Racket Material – Modern Construction Choices
Years ago, rackets were constructed in wood and kept in a press when not in use. This helped to stop the racket’s head from warping. These wooden rackets were very heavy when compared to modern-day models.
Modern rackets are manufactured in a variety of materials that are much lighter and provide the player with greater flexibility of stroke selection. Here is a list of some materials you will come across in modern rackets being manufactured.
- Titanium
- Kevlar
- Carbon
- Steel
- Aluminum
- Fiberglass
The rackets you find in the shops today will be manufactured in a composite made up of a selection from some of the materials stated above.
Racket Workmanship
You can check out the workmanship of the racket to see if it is quality or poorly made. If you do not understand how you can carry out some tests on the racket to know if the racket is a quality one or not, you can take a look at some testing I shared with you here.
- Look at the overall straightness of the shaft. You can place the racket horizontally on a flat table to see if the shaft has an arc with the table. If there is, then the workmanship is poor.
- Check if the paint on the shaft is evenly sprayed. If a certain area is not getting paint or some areas have little or more paint, then the painting craftsmanship is not so ideal.
- Look at the details of the racket. Check if got any defects on it like bubbles, bump, crack, etc.
- Check if the grip tape is broken. Hold the racket in your hand and see how you feel when gripping it.
- See if the string is complete and if any string is broken.
- Swing the racket to check and see if the T-shaped joint or any connection is loose. Check if the shaft and the frame are parallel.
Look at the elasticity of the racket. Press the handle on the table and hang the body. Then pull the racket head and release your hand. Observe the swing of the head. The higher the level of swinging, the better the elasticity of the racket. If the racket is flapping left and right, it is best not to buy it as the racket balance is not good.
6 Tips To Help You Decide On The Best Badminton Racket For You
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- Check out some badminton rackets reviews online to understand how other players felt about their racket purchases.
- Some cheap badminton rackets will be suitable for you, so do not overlook checking them out.
- Some of the best badminton racket brands are Yonex, Carlton, Ashaway, Victor, and Babolat.
- Some rackets are usually only made in one grip size. Use a Karakal super PU grip to enlarge the handle size.
- Isometric head-shaped rackets are the most popular choice amongst all standards of players.
- If you locate the racket you really like, buy two if you can afford it, they might not be available next season.
Is It More Expensive Racket Is Of Better Quality?
Generally, the price of the badminton racket is related to its materials, craftsmanship, and brand. The new model is generally more expensive, and usually, the price will drop a lot after a while.
Typically, the expensive badminton racket is mainly used by professional players, and they may not be suitable to be used by amateurs or beginners. Besides, the average player can hardly feel the slight difference between different racket models.
So the most important thing for you to do is pick a racket you are most comfortable with instead of just looking at the price. Of course, if you don’t consider the price factor and are afforded to pay for the expensive racket, you may go and get the latest branded racket that sells at a high price.
It is a lot of personal preference when it comes to picking a racket. You should know about all these before you buy one so you can get the racket with the characteristics you want and match your playing style.
Conclusion
The rackets mentioned above and their suitability to the level of the player is only a general guide as you can have a beginner or intermediate player who is powerful enough to use a heavier, more rigid racket. You also get top international and county players using lighter, more flexible rackets and winning many tournaments with them.
The best thing to do is go into your local racket shop and hold a few of the badminton rackets in your hand. This will let you experience the balance and weight of each racket.
If possible, try to demo a racket on a piece of badminton equipment. Come and try a session. If there are no come-and-try sessions in your area, you could try to borrow one from a friend or clubmate and try it out for a game or two during a club night or a hired court session at your local sports center. This will ensure you know whether it feels right for you before you buy it.
You can learn more about badminton racket here.