Badminton vs Tennis – What is the difference?

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Badminton vs Tennis
Badminton is a sport played with racquets. In this sport racquets are used for hitting a shuttlecock across a net which is tied at a certain height above the ground. It can be played as singles, which means that is one player per side, as doubles or in larger teams. This sport is often played as a relaxing outdoor activity outdoor.

In a formal way it is played on a rectangular indoor field. The points are scored when the shuttlecock is hit by a team and it lands on the opposite’s team field, touching the ground without any of the team players lifting it up with their racquets. The shuttlecock is a feathered projectile. In informal games it can be a plastic one with or without feathers. The first time that badminton was played was in the 19th century in British India.

Tennis is a racket sport that was first played between 1859 and 1865 in Birmingham, England. Like badminton, this sport can also be played at singles (one vs one) or doubles. Players are using tennis rackets to hit a hollow rubber ball with a felt cover. Originally the ball was white but for better visibility it was changed into optic yellow.

It is easy to see that these two sports have some similarities. Both are racket sports, they can be played as singles or doubles on a rectangular court in a formal or informal way. Both have referees situated at the centre of the pitch in a high chair called “the umpire”.

Despite these similarities, there are many differences between badminton and tennis. First, the equipment used is different. The tennis rackets are heavier and larger in tennis than those used in badminton.

The badminton racket has a longer grip and it weighs around 100g while the one used in tennis can weigh around 300-350g. Another difference pertains to the court. A tennis court is 36 feet by 78 feet which is larger than a badminton court which measures 20 feet by 44 feet.

There is a difference in the rules of the game too. Badminton players, for example, have to drop every shot they want to make. In tennis the ball can be manipulated in many ways by using the racket spins. Because the equipment is lighter, badminton is a faster and easier to play and it involves fewer muscles than tennis. About the movement on the field, tennis requires more of a left-right movement while badminton requires moving all around – left, right, front and back.

The speed of the serving is different too. For example, a badminton serve was recorded around 200mph while a tennis one is around 160mph. Statistics say that the distance covered by players in a game is about 2 miles in tennis and 4 miles in badminton.

In conclusion it can be said that both sports can be played in a formal way or as a relaxing activity. They have some similarities and some differences but in the end both of them entail physical fitness and can be played by observing pretty simple rules that can be learned by practice.