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What is the new spin serve technique, banned by the BWF?

The new form of spin serve is started doing the rounds in the badminton community recently due to its unplayable nature.

By Soumya | May 20, 2023 | 3 Min Read

Badminton has always been a game of tricks. One of the important parts comprises how effective a player is serving and how many points one gets from the serves. This new form of spin serve has started doing the rounds in the badminton community recently. It’s such a deadly serve that even elite players are facing a problem returning it. The spin serve was first used by Denmark’s Marcus Rindshoj although the veracity of this fact cannot be sure. Basically, a player holds the shuttlecock by the cork in between the thumb and middle finger of his left hand and spin it anticlockwise while serving. Without giving the shuttlecock much time to fall, the server has to hit it with the racquet, thus, giving it a rotation while on its path towards the receiver. This has made the spin serve a potent weapon that has been effectively implemented in the sport to shorten the length of the rallies. Upon implementing this service, the points have lasted barely for more than two-three shots in a normal match.

However, to maintain fairness and competitiveness of the game the Badminton World Federation put up an interim ban on the spin serve just before the Sudirman Cup Finals in Suzhou. The ‘spin serve’ was reportedly used for the first time during the Polish Open 2023 in March. The service has been subjected to a lot of debate and discussions amongst the netizens. England’s Greg Mairs and Jenny Moore who themselves are professional badminton players think ‘this service is so effective that it should be banned otherwise, there will be barely any rallies.’

Reactions

Spin serve has received a mixed bag of emotions from the people. Many people were in awe for the first time after seeing the effectiveness of the service. However, it became quite clear later on that this will kill the endurance of rallies in the game of badminton. It also made the game unwatchable cause no one is interested in watching a match where one has to just receive unplayable service. Commentator Gill Clark has said in a tweet “Is it an exciting innovation and development for the sport, or is it creating an unfair advantage for the server? Let me know your thoughts”. This innovation is yet to be registered in the playing styles of the badminton players. Denmark’s singles player Hans Kristian Vittinghus has tweeted, “If it’s near impossible to return for a pro, imagine the impact it can have on badminton as a recreational sport.”

BWF’s verdict on the new spin serve

The BWF council approved the banning of the ‘spin serve’ immediately until 29th May 2023 on the grounds of the Laws of Badminton. The amendment to 9.1.5 of Section 4.1 of the BWF Laws of Badminton now states that the server shall release the shuttle without adding spin, and the server’s racket shall initially hit the base of the shuttle. Any lack of adherence to this rule will lead to the service being called a fault.

The interim ban takes effect at all BWF tournaments starting from the finals of the Sudirman Cup. It will continue in the Malaysian Masters 2023 as well. Sports in the modern world are undergoing constant development and innovations. Spin serve is just a tiny example in this development process. Now, only time will tell whether this innovation is a boon or a curse.

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