Badminton is much like tennis in that it can be played with teams of two (two people on each opposing team) or as a singles game where one person plays against another single person. Both of these sports including other sports such as Squash, Racket Ball and Ping Pong use a type of racket (in Ping Pong a paddle). However the differences between badminton and these various racket sports are many.
Different from tennis, badminton uses a shuttlecock, otherwise known as a shuttle or birdie and the shuttle is not allowed to hit the ground as in tennis. Squash is another racket sport that is played with two players but differs in several ways from badminton.
In the game of squash two opposing players take turns hitting a rubbery ball against a wall. The rackets are shorter at the handle and have a larger target area or "sweet spot". Each player hits the ball against the wall, usually quite violently and their opponent is supposed to return the ball to the wall by hitting it themselves.
In the game of squash there are similarities as well, when the opponent misses the ball and does not hit it back to the wall the other player scores a point. In squash the ball is allowed to hit the floor once much like tennis. If the ball bounces on the ground more than once a point is given to the opposing team.
Much like badminton there are deceptive shots in both tennis and squash and both sports use the same types of strikes. The strikes will include different variations of backhand, forehand and around the head shots.
Ping pong is much like a miniature tennis game that is played on a table. It can be considered to be like badminton and other racket sports as the goal is to score points by ensuring that your competitor does not get the proper chance to hit the hollow plastic ball back to your end of the court.
The ping pong table looks much like a small version of a badminton or tennis court and is raised to waist level with a small 6 inch net stretching across the middle. The players must hit the ball across the net, it is allowed to bounce once and then needs to be returned to the opposer by way of hitting it with a paddle.
All of these sports have the same general idea which is to score a point on your opponent by creating sufficient doubt or hesitation causing them to miss the shot available. There are deceptive shots and similarities in the types of swing in all these games when compared to badminton.
The main differences will be the subtle differences in the equipment and scoring systems. They are all great games but badminton is one of the most exciting in my book.
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