How to Hit a Flick Serve in Badminton

A difficult but deadly doubles serve, the flick serve is most effective when disguised as a simple backhand serve.

Difficulty: Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Badminton Set

1. Stand close to the service line, with your racquet foot forward and your feet about shoulder width apart.

2. 

   Hold the shuttle several inches below your waist, pinching the feathers between your thumb and forefinger. Try not to hold the shuttle further away from your body. Although this would make the flick easier to hit hard, it also telegraphs your intent to your opponent, ruining the element of surprise.

3. 

   Hold the elbow of your racquet arm up at shoulder level, with your racquet head down almost against your opposite thigh, behind the shuttle.

4. Drop the shuttle.

5. 

   Flick your wrist and push forward with your forearm harder than you would on a normal backhand serve, striking the shuttle below your waist with an open racket face.

6. Hit the shuttle high and deep into your opponent's service court. Try to hit it to your opponent's backhand and higher than his reach.

7. Follow through to about shoulder height and quickly recover to your ready position.

Tips & Warnings

• The key to the flick serve is to make it look like a regular backhand serve, but then to flick much harder than you would for a backhand serve, driving the shuttle higher and deeper than your opponent expects.
• Learn to watch your opponent for signs of the flick serve.

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on 12/15/2005 The thumb-up backhand grip is preferred by most players as the standard grip is less effective. That is, the thumb, in this case, is pointing downward.