India struggling to beat USA, who downed Denmark at World Juniors Mixed Team event is a sign of badminton’s impending churn

There were different mind-bending results successful the people of the week astatine World Juniors successful China. France bushed Korea. The USA had really beaten Thailand. In the last positions, they besides downed mighty Denmark. Trinidad and Tobago bushed Mongolia, fielding conscionable 3 players, implicit 10 matches. On their World Badminton Junior Championship debut, nary less.

And, New Zealand – they of the wretched luck of 2019 bound countback successful World Cup cricket fame – mislaid all, but 1 lucifer to the Netherlands. But they ended up winning the necktie claiming the decisive last relay limb – the past important match, against the Dutch.

What is relay scoring?

The highly analyzable relay scoring strategy – wherever you transportation guardant points from 1 lucifer to next, and each lucifer is conscionable the first-to-multiple of 11 levelling points (whichever squad is closest to 11, 22, 33, 44, 55, truthful on, upto 111 squad points), was dusted disconnected and utilized for the BWF World Junior Mixed Team Championships, that person been underway successful Nanchang.

The relay scoring strategy for a mix-match of each 5 categories successful singles and doubles, is simply a bequest inherited from the 2018 Youth Olympic Games held astatine Buenos Aires. Those Games successful Argentina volition spell down arsenic a landmark successful sporting innovation, not conscionable for getting large numbers for Breaking arsenic a sport, but for tweaking astir contention formats and whipping up scoring systems successful a bully earthy bowl. A good scoring crockery it mightiness be, keeping the code youthful and turning badminton into a due squad endeavour. But it had crunch.

You play your lucifer – reaching 11 points oregon chasing its aggregate – and measurement aside, and squad mates instrumentality implicit the baton. This goes connected implicit 10 matches, with nary pause, and 1 lucifer tin spell anyplace betwixt 5 minutes to 16 minutes. It’s the azygous pizza portion mentation of a badminton match, the slider-sized two-bites-and polished disconnected bonzai burger assortment of the squad game, known for its marathon Thomas and Uber Cup contests successful seniors. The upcoming shuttlelings though, were offered conscionable a tasting sampler of the existent meal. And the results were amazingly pleasant.

As wholly unheard of and unheralded Trinidadians and Americans and the yuppie French bounced astir celebrating their wins, a clump of players from the newbie nations spoke of “shaking connected the court”, “shivering with happiness” fixed they had ne'er experienced winning against the large countries.

The funky format allows upsets, encourages them even. And it was axenic adrenaline that the U19s were experiencing coursing done them. The Caribbean young players, who’ve ne'er blipped connected the badminton radar, were abruptly believing that they could perchance bushed Denmark 1 day. Unrealistic, but seeds of the imagination were sown, and determination was merry speech astir grooming hard towards those newfound goals.

China, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Japan yet made their mode up to the Final Four. But 1 of the unintended spinoffs of relay-badminton, and the anticipation of underdogs edging retired the biggies, has been it tosses up a imagination for shuttlers from unfancied nations to instrumentality a shot. Chen Jin, the erstwhile affable beast from China, present moving arsenic inferior coach, was watching, and was near rather amused astatine however the format levelled things retired for smaller nations.

#SuhandinataCup2024 – Medalists

🥇INDONESIA
🥈CHINA
🥉JAPAN
🥉MALAYSIA#WJC2024 pic.twitter.com/IBPgdd7GbI

— Badminton Talk (@BadmintonTalk) October 5, 2024

Other trends are visible: USA and France are decidedly connected the rise, the Americans leaping faster than anyone thought. Chinese Taipei isn’t going distant adjacent aft Tai Tzu Ying. Malaysia is making amends successful women’s doubles and accelerated catching up, and Indonesian women’s doubles is successful resurrection mode. China and Japan person juniors playing astatine a precise precocious level. Indian juniors are terribly dilatory starters successful quickfire formats, similar the 11 constituent 1 connected connection here, though the men’s doubles are showing the tummy for a fight.

The idiosyncratic events volition connection a clearer picture, but the badminton canvas is expanding with players from newer countries. China volition clasp on, adjacent arsenic Americans with their Chinese and Polish-origin ethnicity nationals equine a situation starring upto LA Olympics.

India though, is lagging worryingly behind, forced to decorativeness 6th aft going down to Chinese Taipei. The signs are ominous.