Experience

Casual play with friends & family.  No formal training.

Grip & Stroke

Fixed grip, often ‘frying pan’ or backhand only.  May emulate grip from other racquet sports.  

Movement

Usually moves too slow or too fast, frequently unable to reach shuttle.  Difficulty anticipating opponents’ shot trajectory.

Serve & Return

Inconsistent (less than 50%).  Unable to control height or angle.  Focused on keeping shots in the court.

Offense

Mostly focused on keeping shot in the court.  May attack whenever possible, even if not in position.

Defense 

Unable to consistently read opponent’s shots.  Unable to defend against shots with pace.

Strategy

No strategy per se, other than keeping shots in the court.

Knowledge

May or may not understand scoring and lines.  Difficulty remembering score.  No sense of sport-specific etiquette.

Experience

May play casually or competitively.  Little to no formal training.  May have some receational tournament experience.  Likely prefers plastic shuttles.

Grip & Stroke

Usually self-taught.  Grip is fixed in one or two positions and overly firm.  Mostly uses elbow, shoulder and body to generate power.  Backhand very weak and inconsistent.

Movement

Can reach the shuttle most of the time, but movement not efficient.  No split step or scissor kick.  Frequently forgets proper doubles positioning / rotation.

Serve & Return

Serve is becoming more consistent (50-70%).  Short serve is high, long/flick serve is short.  Serve return predictable based on serve trajectory.

Offense

May have developed power, but not much consistency.  Unforced errors are very common.  Attacks are flat and only one speed depending on attacking position.

Defense

Has developed some defense against certain shots.  Unexpected attack angles / speeds generate errors. 

Strategy

May try to keep the rally going, or may try to attack everything.  May be starting to use openings in opponents’ defense when obvious.

Knowledge

Understands line calls and scoring.  May not know service rules, tournament formats, etc.  Etiquette depends on background.  May perceive they are more skilled than they actually are, relative to others.

Experience

Interested in competitive play. Competed in some junior / intermediate tournaments.  May have had some coaching as part of a team.  Still prefers plastic shuttles.

Grip & Stroke

Starting to use wrist to generate power, but still relies on elbow and shoulder for power.  Can switch grip given enough time.  Backhand stronger, but inconsistent and still using hinged wrist/elbow.  May have 1-2 deceptive shots developed through experience, but may not use them effectively.  

Movement

Movement becoming more efficient.  Scissor kick used when time permits.  Still no consistent split step.  Understands doubles rotation and ‘returning to base’ for singles.  Struggles with Mixed positioning.

Serve & Return

Short serve (60-80%) is tighter when not under pressure, but still predictable.  Long serve (70-80%) deeper, harder to attack.  Starting to add some variety to serve return, getting occasional winner.

Offense

Has distinct clear, smash, and drop now, but always executed with the same power and angle (depending on attacking position).  Starting to consistently direct shots to weaker opponent in doubles, or opponent’s backhand in singles.

Defense

Becoming able to anticipate attacks and defend against them.  Not yet able to predictably convert defense into offense.  Still gets caught by unexpected shots, and awkward angles (e.g. cross-body, at hips/shoulders, etc.)

Strategy

Tries to pull opponents out of position to create openings, but only using single shots and not able to execute consistently.

Knowledge

Understands the sport rules. Has played at multiple clubs, and understands etiquette, though may not apply it.  Player often thinks they are more skilled than they actually are, relative to others.

Experience

Has played for several years on teams and in leagues, and competed in many tournaments.  Has been coached (mostly fitness & technique), but still stuggles with bad habits.  Prefers feather shuttles because of superior control.  May be a Level 5 or 6 athlete several years retired from competition.

Grip & Stroke

Primarily uses wrist rotation for power and precision.  Backhand may still be significantly weaker, but can return shots consitantly and with reasonable depth and precision.  Deception (slices, holds) more practiced and used more effectively, but still only for a few shots and somewhat inconsistent.

Movement

Simple (1-2 step) movement patterns now practiced and becoming more efficient.  Movement quality may degrade rapidly with fatigue.  Split step is used 25-50% of the time.  Starting to understands when to adjust position when opponents’ shots are predictable or limited.  Familiar with movement in all 3 events, but much better at 1 of them.

Serve & Return

Short and long serve are both 90%+, though many still get attacked regularly.  Moves to intercept serve to maximize shot options, and varies return based on opponents’ positioning and weaknesses. 

Offense

When in position, lifts/clears are consistently high and deep, other shots consistently tight to the net.  Starting to consciously vary both power and angle of shots to test opponents’ defense and avoid predictability. 

Defense

Now able to defend against quality attacks and take advantage of weak attacks such as drive/drop return of smash or executing tight net returns.  Able to redirect on defense when in position.

Strategy

Starting to think in terms of shot and movement patterns, stringing 2-3 shots in a row to achieve an advantage.  Able to adjust strategy based on opponents, and based on own level of fatigue.

Knowledge

Understands the sport rules, etiquette and tournament formats.  Can reasonably assess level of play relative to own.

Experience

Has trained with professional coaches for many years, and competed in dozens of provincial- and national-level tournaments.  May also be a retired Level 6 athlete.

Grip & Stroke

Uses wrist and fingers to generate power and maximize deception and shot-making options.  Advanced-level use of a variety of deception techniques, used consistently.

Movement

Movement is very fast and efficent – player appears extremely ‘light’. Movement quality only degrades after long periods of mental and physical effort.  Split step is used 80-90% of the time. Positioning optimized to take advantage of any weakness in opponents’ shots, and to defend against deception.  Can move/rotate effectively in all events, but specializes in 1-2.  Recovery after demanding efforts is very fast.

Serve & Return

Serve consistency very high (98%+) and is very difficult to attack.  Able to add some deception and variety to serve when applicable.  Serve return is always aggressive to maintain pressure on opponent(s).

Offense

Able to consistently maintain offense through deception, speed, positioning, and grip adjustment.  Generally few unforced errors unless under high pressure.  Varies attack speed and angle to keep opponents off balance.  A weak defensive return by opponents usually results in a won point.

Defense

Intercepts shuttle as soon as possible to maximize defensive angles.  Able to consistently use deception when receiving weak offensive shots.

Strategy

Analyses opponents strengths and weaknesses to optimize strategy based on own skills.  Advanced understanding of movement and shot patterns, and when to use them.  Takes factors such as physical and mental strength and fatigue into account.  Has a mental ‘play book’ of strategies to choose from.

Knowledge

Complete understanding of sport up to the provincial or national level of competition.

Experience

Has trained with professional coaches since childhood, and is a gifted athlete.  Competed in dozens of national- and international-level tournaments.  Trains and competes full-time, or recently retired (likely coaching).

Grip & Stroke

Has expert coordination, and a variety of shot options at all times.  Can apply deception to almost any shot, and does so whenever it creates an advantage.

Movement

Refined through years of practice and coaching, specialized for a specific event.  Anticipates/reads opponents’ shot options at expert level and adjusts position accordingly.  Split step used for every shot.  Superior sport-specific fitness means fatigue rarely shows unless under significant pressure for long periods.  Recovery after demanding efforts is very fast.

Serve & Return

Serve and return regularly incorporate deception, and remains very consistent.  Serve return is extremely aggressive in doubles, more patient (when necessary) in singles.

Offense

As with Level 5, but faster and with more variety and deception. 

Defense

Usually a series of high-quality attacking shots needed to force a defensive error.  Able to defend against any shot when properly positioned. 

Strategy

As with Level 5, but more quickly analyses opponents, and a more extensive set of strategies to choose from.  Alters strategy on a point-by-point basis to avoid predictability and to respond to own and opponents’ fatigue, environmental factors, etc.

Knowledge

Complete understanding of the sport up to the national and international level of competition.