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How to Choose a Badminton Racket

How to Choose a Badminton Racket
Info

Choosing the right badminton racket is key to improving your game. Whether you play singles or doubles, this page should give you a guide to selecting the right racket.

Flexible vs Stiff frame

A more flexible racket will allow a player with a lighter touch to maintain control during play so we recommend that average/improver level players select a racket which has more ‘give’. Stiffer rackets are aimed at the more experienced and advanced player who has greater power and accuracy.

Flexible vs Stiff image
Flex
Flex
Balance

All badminton rackets can be categorised on their balance: Head Heavy, Head Light or Even Balanced. Head Heavy rackets are aimed at powerful players who like to play from the back of the court, as the extra weight helps to increase the power on clears and smashes. Head Light rackets are ideal for club players who mainly play doubles as it can help to move the racket quickly especially in defensive positions. The Even Balanced rackets provides a middle ground between the other two categories giving a balance between power and manoeuvrability.

balance image
balance
balance
Weight

Badminton rackets usually come in weight categories, the most popular are 3U (85-89g) and 4U (80-84g). We recommend that beginners go for a lighter weight racket so it's easier to manoeuvre, and then progress to a heavier racket to get more power. Professional singles players are generally using 3U weighted rackets, whereas the doubles players tend to use 4U rackets.

Weight video
 
Strings

It is also important to consider the string in a badminton racket as this can also affect the way a racket feels. A high string tension will provide more control, but makes the sweet spot smaller. Whereas a lower tension will create more power and will be more durable. We recommend the beginners to club players have their rackets strung between 20-24lbs, and advanced players have them at 24-28lbs. Another consideration is the string used, a thin string will give more feel and control but will be less durable than a thicker string.

String image
String image
String image