A net shot is a soft stroke played from your forecourt that travels to your opponent's forecourt, passing as close to the top of the net as possible. You use it when the shuttle has dropped below the height of the net tape: it brings your opponent forward and, if they have to lift, gives you the attack. It is a gentle push with the racket held out in front, played off a lunge, then you recover. A camera can read your lunge, your reach and how compact your racket action is; the shuttle's flight and how tight it falls to the net are outcomes the app can't see.
Reach, then lunge
Hold the racket out in front of your body with a relaxed grip: the basic grip for a forehand net shot, a relaxed thumb grip for a backhand net shot.
racket already up and in front, hand loose.
Lead with the racket arm, then the leg. Reach the racket toward the shuttle first, then take a large step into a lunge with your racket-side foot.
the racket gets there before your foot lands.
Land heel first, with your lead foot pointing at where you will hit the shuttle and your lead knee bending in the same direction as that foot. Turn your rear foot out and extend your rear arm for balance.
foot, knee and racket all point at the shuttle.
Soft push, early contact
Meet the shuttle as close to the top of the net as you can. The earlier you take it, the easier it is to keep it low. If it is still above tape height, that is a chance to kill it instead (see Net Kill); if it has dropped well below, a lift is often the safer choice.
you take it high, not after it has fallen.
Use a relaxed reach, present the strings to the shuttle and push gently through it. Let the momentum of your body moving forward carry the shot; there is almost no backswing and no swing at it.
a gentle push, like placing it over the net.
Once the plain push is reliable, add spin: brush across the bottom of the shuttle in a slightly curved path so it tumbles over the net. For a right-hander it spins most naturally with the racket moving right to left under the shuttle. Spin works best close to the net.
a light brush under the base, not a hit.
Tight over the net, recover
Aim for the shuttle to cross just above the tape and land in your opponent's forecourt, in front of their short service line.
it clears the tape and drops.
Follow through by bringing the racket up, ready for their next shot, then push back out of the lunge off your front foot and move back toward the centre.
racket up first, then push back.
Feel it
A good net shot feels quiet: racket out in front early, a relaxed grip, a gentle push, and a balanced lunge with your foot and knee pointing at the shuttle. If it feels like a hit, it is usually too hard. Take the shuttle as high as you can, push it over, bring the racket up and recover. The app reads your lunge, your reach and how compact your racket action is; how tight the shuttle falls to the net is the outcome.
Fix-its
- Your net shot floats up and gets killed Meet the shuttle earlier and closer to the top of the net, and push gently instead of swinging. A loose, high net shot is what the net kill punishes.
- You take the shuttle late and low, and it goes into the net Get the racket up and out in front sooner, and lead with the arm before the leg. If you are already late and the shuttle is well below the tape, lift it to the back instead.
- Your grip is tight and the touch is harsh Relax your grip; the stroke is a push using the body's forward momentum, not a hit.
- Your lunge foot twists or your knee points a different way from your foot Point the lead foot at the shuttle, land heel first, and bend the knee in the same direction as the foot. This is BWF's cue to protect the knee and ankle.
- You admire the shot and don't recover Bring the racket up straight after contact and push back from the lunge, ready for a net reply or a lift.
Drill
- No-net target pushes: racket out in front, a partner hand-feeds, and you push the shuttle gently up onto a floor target. Do forehand and backhand.
- Fed net shots: a partner throws the shuttle over the net and you push it gently back, then return the racket to the start position. Swap roles after 12 shuttles each.
- Add movement in stages: net shots with a lunge, then with a chassé and lunge, then with a split-step, chassé and lunge. Start backhand, then forehand, then alternate.
- Scoring game: a feeder in the rearcourt throws the shuttle over and may move only after you hit. You get 10 attempts: 1 point if they have to step into the forecourt to catch it, 3 points if it lands in the forecourt.
- Net rally: play net shots only, from below net height, with anything landing beyond the short service line out. Once it is steady, experiment with spinning the shuttle.
By position
Singles: a tight net shot brings your opponent forward and, if they have to lift, gives you an attack and space in their rearcourt. Doubles: when your partner plays drop shots, the front player moves in to the net to threaten and cut off net replies, so tight net shots and the readiness to kill a loose one both matter there.
Sources
- BWF — Badminton Coach Education Coaches' Manual Level 1, 2nd ed., Module 7: Forecourt Strokes, Backhand and Forehand Net Shot (pp. 96–100); Module 6: Lunging; Module 8: doubles front player; Module 11: injury-prevention tips
- BWF — Shuttle Time Schools Badminton Lesson Plans (2017), Lesson 3: Net and Lunge; Lesson 4: Net and Starting
- Hsueh, Chen, Pan & Tsai — Biomechanical analysis of badminton forehand net shots, ISBS Proceedings (2012)
- Lam, Wong & Lee — Biomechanics of lower limb in badminton lunge: a systematic scoping review, PeerJ (2020)
Last checked 2026-10-26.