Badminton is fast and played on a small court against someone trying to pull you off balance, so moving quickly and efficiently matters as much as your strokes. BWF coaching breaks every movement into a cycle: START (the split-step as your opponent hits), APPROACH (chassé, running or cross-behind steps to the shuttle), HIT, and RECOVER (moving back toward the reply you expect). From the front the app reads your body: the split-step hop and landing, how low and wide your base is, your steps, and your return toward base. It does not see the shuttle or your opponent.
Split-step to load
Wait near your base in a ready stance: feet about shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent, weight on the balls of your feet, racket up in front.
springy, not settled on your heels.
As your opponent swings, make a shallow jump off the ground. Time it so you land as they hit the shuttle or just after. In a lab study of eight collegiate players the hop came within about 0.01 to 0.04 seconds after the opponent's strike.
a small bounce in time with their hit, not a big jump.
Land with your feet wider than when you took off and your knees bent. Keep your upper body relaxed and between your feet, with a slight forward bend at the hips.
a wide, low, balanced landing.
Push off explosively and keep ground contact short. The leg on the side away from where you're going does most of the pushing. One foot usually lands a fraction first, and it decides where you go: left foot first, move right; right foot first, move left; front foot first, move back; back foot first, move forward.
as if the floor is hot.
Chassé/step to the shuttle
For short distances use a chassé: one foot chases the other but never quite catches it. Keep your knees slightly bent and your head at the same height. Use one or two chassés at a time; chasséing the long diagonals of the court is slow.
skimming across the floor with a level head.
For longer distances use running steps. Going forward, your feet land heel then toe with longer strides. Going backward, stay on your toes with quick, short strides, curving slightly so you end up side-on to the shuttle. In the rearcourt you can also use a cross-behind: your non-racket leg passes behind your racket leg.
To reach the forecourt, finish with a lunge, usually on your racket leg. Land heel first, point your lead foot at the shuttle, and keep that knee pointing the same way as the foot. Turn the rear foot out and extend your rear arm for balance. Lunge deeper only when you are under pressure.
lead knee and toes aimed at the shuttle together.
Recover to base
After you hit, push back out of the lunge and chassé or step back toward base, moving in the direction of the reply you expect. Then split-step again as your opponent hits. Top singles players' split-steps were found clustered close to the base position.
hit, push back, split again.
Feel it
Light and springy on the balls of your feet. A small hop that lands wide and low as your opponent hits, then a quick push away as if the floor is hot. Your head stays level as you chassé, your upper body stays between your feet, and your legs, not your arm, get you to the shuttle. After every shot you push back toward base and are ready to split-step again. Build up from walking pace before trying to move at full speed.
Fix-its
- No split-step, or it's late (you're still in the air or standing still when they hit) March on the spot facing a partner and split-step every time they tap a shuttle. Aim to land as their racket meets the shuttle.
- Your split-step is a big, slow jump Keep it shallow and spend as little time on the ground as you can. Imagine the floor is hot.
- You lean or reach with your upper body instead of moving your feet Do the split-step catch drill: catch the shuttle two-handed in front of you so your legs have to drive you into position.
- You chassé the whole way across the court, or bob up and down while you do it Use one or two chassés for short moves and running steps for long ones. Fix your eyes on a point on the wall ahead and keep it still.
- Your lunge foot twists, or the knee points a different way from the foot Point the lead foot at the shuttle, land heel first, and check that knee and foot aim in the same direction.
Drill
- Split-step on the spot: march in place facing a partner holding a racket and shuttle. Tap in front: split with feet side by side. Tap to your left: split with your right foot forward. Tap to your right: split with your left foot forward.
- Mirror chase: face a partner. The leader chassés side to side and changes direction; you chassé to stay with them. Swap roles every 30 to 40 seconds and keep the chassés short.
- Tramline split-steps: split-step, chassé across the tramlines, then split again. Start slowly, build to full speed, and work forward and backward. A partner can shout "change" to switch direction.
- Split-step catch: split-step as a partner throws the shuttle, then move and catch it two-handed in front of you. Progress to one-handed catches to each side without leaning too far.
- Chained pattern: walk toward the forecourt, split-step with your racket foot leading, chassé, lunge and shadow a net shot, then chassé back once. Film it from the front to check your landing width, lunge alignment and push back.
Sources
- BWF — Badminton Coach Education Coaches' Manual Level 1, 2nd ed., Module 6: Movement Skills (split-step, approach and recovery, lunging, movement patterns)
- BWF — Shuttle Time Schools Badminton Lesson Plans (2017), Lessons 2, 3 and 4
- Hsueh, Pan & Tsai — Hop timing of split step and kinetics analysis of lower extremities in badminton start footwork, ISBS Proceedings (2016)
- Shishido & Nishijima — Characteristics of split-step skills of the world's top athletes in badminton, PLOS ONE (2025)
- Lam, Wong & Lee — Biomechanics of lower limb in badminton lunge: a systematic scoping review, PeerJ (2020)
Last checked 2026-10-26.