Cooperative Net-play

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Players try to see how long they can hit the bird to each other moving from one side of the court to the other and then back again.

Two players stand on opposite sides of the net at one side of the court, one of the players holds a bird.

The player with the bird gently hits a short shot over the net to her partner.
The other player does a gentle return.
Players continue hitting the bird to each other as they try to move to the other side of the court and then back again.

Safety considerations:
- Racquets may not cross the plane of the net to avoid players from hitting each other.
Instructional tips:
- Players should contact the bird as early as possible to avoid having to hit the bird to far up.
Variations:
- Competitive Net game:
  - One player stands on either side of the net just behind the short-service line in a doubles serve/serve receive position–can also be played on a narrow (half) court to accommodate more people on the court.
  - The objective of this game is to have the bird land on the opponents side of the court. Regular badminton rules apply with two significant differences.
    - Only a short serve into regular court is permitted.
    - Following the serve the short service line becomes the back of the court. All playing must occur inside the very short court.
- Competitive 2-zone Net Game: This game is a more difficult version of Competitive Net Game. Mark 2 2-metre squares on either side of the court by the net. After the service players can only score if the bird lands in either of their opponent’s 2 zones.
- Half Cooperative Net Game (or Competitive Net Game): Play these games on only half (narrow) court.
- Doubles Net Games: Play Cooperative Net Game or any of the above variations with 2 players per side.
As a cool-down
- Cooperative Net Game plus the Doubles Net Games will work well as cool-downs–the other variations are too demanding.