Badminton is a racquet sport that demands sharp reflexes and active footwork on every single point to ensure that the shuttle lands within bounds on the opponent’s side of the court or that it remains unreachable or unreturnable from the opponent.
Shuttlers indulge in swift rallies at the professional level, wherein they display the range of shots that can be hit from every area of the court. Arguably, from a spectator’s point of view, the rallies at the net often brings them to the edge of their seats. Considering the fact that the shuttle’s landing in the net, and the racquet touching the net mid-rally are known fouls or faults, the proximity of rallies at the net bring out gasps of exclamations from the audience.
In professional badminton, a player can hit a shot only after the shuttle’s parabola has passed the net and entered their side of the court. The first point of contact that the player makes with the shuttle must be after it has passed over the net and is in their half of the court. It is legal for a player to pass their racquet over the net as a follow-through after hitting a stroke.
Players cannot hit a shot when the shuttle is still in the opponent’s half of the court mid-air. Breaching the net and making a contact with the shuttle when it is still in the opponent’s half is considered a foul. The player immediately loses the rally, and thus the point.
In rallies that are close to the net, players may unintentionally pass their foot below the net and land it on opponent’s half of the court. This is usually not a fault unless the foot has hindered or distracted the opponent while making the return.
Thus, players can pass the racquet over the net, but only as a follow through of the stroke that they hit when the shuttle was on their side of the court.
