A medical timeout in badminton refers to a situation where a player has sustained an injury in between the match. If the player is injured, the medical officials are called by the referee and the chair umpire to help in assessing the severity of the injury.
The laws of badminton do not explicitly state the total permissible time for a medical concern. Hence, the first assessment of the medical official decides the total time that is allowed for the player. During this assessment, the chair umpire is bound by law to ask the player to ask them if at all they can continue. If the player says no, then the chair umpire announces the final score and retires the player.
A medical timeout may also arise due to an injury that results in bleeding. In such a situation, the player’s bleeding is first controlled and the area is bandaged. Play can only resume after complete cessation of bleeding and the protection of the wound is complete.
A medical timeout that arises due to sickness should be dealt by having the consent of the medical official. Players can be allowed some time to recover from after consuming a medication for cramps or vomiting. If a suspicion arises regarding the health of the player, the chair umpire has the right to announce the discontinuation and termination of the ongoing match.
The chair umpire also has to communicate with the opposing player or team and inform them of the medical timeout of the player. Any undue delay by the player, i.e., continuing to rehabilitate after the permissible timeout has elapsed can result in immediate penalty of points or a suitable fine that corresponds to the laws of the Badminton World Federation.
