How to buy badminton rackets, strings, grips and shoes

Lower tension stringbed creates a great sweet spot for light-hitters, creating a trampoline effect on the shuttle and helping you control the shuttle better. Ideally, beginners are advised to start with lower tension stringbeds. Tightly strung stringbeds offers more power but lesser control and need advanced skills to work with. Below is a table which explains ideal string tension ranges based on player level.

Player Level	String Tension Range
Beginners	19-20 lbs
Intermediate	21-14 lbs
Advanced	25+ lbs

Badminton Grips

Badminton grips

When it comes to badminton grips, it’s all about your preference as a player. Badminton grips are differentiated based on the material: there are towel grips and synthetic PU grips. Towel grips are classic, great at sweat-absorption but not durable at all. They need to be changed often because they tend to accumulate germs from sweat and can cause infections. Synthetic PU badminton grips offer better shock-absorption and are more durable.

Badminton Shoes

Badminton shoes

Finding the right pair of badminton shoes is all about comfort and fit. But there are a few things to be kept in mind. Since badminton is all about fast-paced movement in all directions, lots of lunges and abrupt halts, ensure that the shoes you pick come with lateral support. However, watch out for the soles: the soles must be thin. This is why you shouldn’t use running shoes (they’re only meant for forward movement) or cross-trainers because these shoes tend to have thick soles. A thin sole is required to ensure that your feet stay close to the ground. Thick soles put your feet too high up from the ground, aggravating chances of ankle injuries with each lunge you make. Thin surface-hugging gummy soles to grip the court surface and add stability keep your feet close to the ground allowing you to move freely and naturally. Most ankle movements work best when they are natural.