For our coming column, I wanted to look at mixed doubles as a discipline and what it takes to be good at this. As effects stand, while India have top 20 players across the other four disciplines, mixed doubles is kindly lagging before. But rather of just explaining what goes into being a good mixed doubles brace, I allowed it would be good to attack this else.

In a packed timetable like the bone we’ve for badminton, matches come thick and fast. And in all that volume, it’s maybe easy to flash back results, but not always easy to flash back points. Every now and also however, there will a rally that will leave you speechless, one that will leave a serious impact on your brain and stay there.

So we will look at mixed doubles through the lens of this sensational exchange between China’s Zheng Si Wei/ Huang Ya Qiong and Indonesia’s Rehan Naufal Kusharjanto/ Lisa Ayu Kusumawati at the All England Open semifinal this time.

Decrypting the stylish of the stylish
So, let’s pass to crack this absolute monster of a rally between China’s Zheng/ Huang, who, in my opinion, would go down as the topmost mixed doubles brace of all time, and Indonesia’s high bimahs Kusharjanto/ Kusumawati.

Let’s begin with the service and receiving conformation. Zheng/ Huang are in red and the former is serving. Huang’s task, as the womanish player’s job is in this set- up, is just to get the net shot as beforehand as possible, which would give them the early advantage of getting the attack beforehand in the rally. She doesn’t need to worry about any shot which passes her shoulders as Zheng is so close to her.

Huang has also fully blocked the straight net shot from her opponent and is baiting her counterpart to go crosscourt at the net. It’s comparatively a advanced- threat shot than the straight net shot. Also, her counterpart will have to go through her if she plays a crosscourt net shot, and Huang is backing herself to block if the opponent plays a crosscourt net shot. The strike is that Zheng can not pull out the wide low serve but doing that will expose his cacography hinder corner.

Zheng, as anticipated, makes the quality low serve near to the T line to cut down the angles. Kusumawati, the womanish Indonesian player, has taken the shuttle high and can play the straight net shot but is vary of the pressure from Huang at the net. Kusharjanto is still close to his mate to cut down the midcourt shots, both manly athletes are close to their separate mates as they want to keep the pressure and don’t want to lift beforehand in the rally and be in a protective position.

Kusumawati decides to play the midcourt drive due to the pressure created by Huang, which is precisely what the Chinese brace want. Zheng is in a great position then now; he can either drive straight or make the straight or crosscourt block and keep the pressure to get the attack.

Zheng plays the crosscourt block, but Kusumawati has read the play well. She’s alert enough to watch Zheng’s chatter position and anticipate the crosscourt block, making it hard for the Chinese brace to get on attack. utmost brigades would have lifted at this stage of the rally. still, this is where Kusumawati shows why she’s regarded as one of the stylish lady mixed doubles players on stint.

But Huang is again brilliant at the net to take the shuttle beforehand from Kusumawati’s straight block and veritably dashingly places the shuttle on the open right side of the Indonesian brace, and now the Chinese platoon is well ahead in the rally. Kushrajanto is late now and has only two options lift or look to play the midcourt block.

The Indonesian plays the midcourt block, bug Zheng, who’s the stylish at cutting out the midcourt blocks, maintains the pressure by staying near to his mate. He takes the shuttle high and makes the straight block.

The Indonesian brace has no option but to lift. Now, look at Zheng’s explosive speed; he has gone from midcourt to the backcourt within no time and made the perpendicular jump. And also, look at Huang’s position at the net. she knows Zheng is going to smash and knows the most likely shot will be a drive that she wants to block to maintain the attack when she expects Zheng to make the straight smash to Kushrajanto.

Also Zheng plays the double barranca and goes for the big crosscourt smash, which is surprising considering Huang’s frontcourt positioning. Then’s where the womanish player has to be alert. As you can see in the still the moment Zheng plays the big crosscourt smash, Huang has moved her position to cover the vacant right front fund.

Kusumawati is again super apprehensive and alert and reads Huang’s movement towards the right side and wrong foots her with the protective block on the left hand side. She charges ahead to the net but, look nearly at the difference in the positioning between Kusharjanto and Zheng. Zheng is near to his mate compared to Kusharjanto and looks more alert for midcourt drive whereas Kushrajanto is a many elevation before and is looking for the lift.

Formerly again, Zheng and Huang are clear in their separate places. The shuttle has crossed Huang’s shoulder, and she does n’t indeed bother trying because her focus is on the net shots, and she has complete trust in her mate to keep the pressure from the midcourt.