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Believe it or not, not everyone is born with an equipped badminton bag. I know, shocking! But with this handy checklist, you’ll have all the essential items for your badminton bag for your next badminton session!
1. Rackets!
What else would I start with?! But it’s important to have more than one for those dreaded instances you break a string. If you’re anything like me, I like to have several of the same rackets so that if I break one, there isn’t a situation where I have to adjust to a different racket. Particularly in the middle of a match! So whether that racket is a Yonex, Victor or any other brand, make sure you have at least two if you can!
Of course, as we all know rackets can be expensive and having more than one high-end racket isn’t always feasible. However, as I mentioned before, the best racket is not the most expensive one. It’s the one that suits you best. Picking a badminton racket isn’t always easy but finding the right one feels like Excalibur in your hand.
2. Badminton Shoes
This is the most important piece of equipment to include. A good pair of badminton shoes will not only support your ankles on the court. They will also provide the necessary grip to allow you to move quickly around it too! Assuming the floor is looked after of course! You don’t need anything super expensive, as long as they are badminton specific. More expensive shoes will have all sorts of technology to make them as comfortable and supportive as possible. But to be honest, a shoe is a shoe, and a mid-range shoe is often more than enough. Without the price tag!
3. Shoe Spray/Powder
If you’re going to have a nice pair of badminton shoes, the last thing you want is them smelling like a swamp. Especially when you forget to take them out of your badminton bag and they just stew in there for a few days until your next session. Then you take them out and everyone in a 1m radius collapses.
To prevent this, you can try a variety of things. I find that tackling the problem before it starts is best. Using a foot powder that keeps the feet dry during play will help stop sweating and therefore stop bacteria building up which causes that stench.
You could also try foot spray which a lot of badminton players use. This can be sprayed before and after to keep your shoes fresh. There’s nothing worse than taking the shoes off and getting a whiff of that odour. Make sure you spray that thang!
Lastly, you could try an odour ball. Great as a cloaking device. It won’t actually tackle the bacteria as the other two above, but it will help to at least keep things smelling fresh. Especially if you through a few in where you keep your shoes, or just in your badminton bag itself!
4. Badminton Strings
I always find it useful to have a set of badminton strings in your bag handy. Especially if you need to have your racket strung by a third party. Rather than paying them for their strings and labour, you can at least cover the strings. It will mean a cheaper stringing job and you’re guaranteed to have the strings you want!
Check out The Best Yonex Badminton Strings I’ve Tried if you’re unsure which strings to get. Also if cost-effectiveness is more important to you, or brands are less important, there are some surprisingly cheap strings out there that are actually pretty good! Such as Pros Pros strings or Toalson Strings. They’re really cost-effective and I have found them as good as the bigger branded strings without the high price point!
5. Scissors
It’s easy to overlook this one, but if your string goes, it is best practice to cut the remaining strings, especially at high tensions. There is now uneven pressure on the frame of the racket which could cause it to distort or even break. A small pair of scissors will do – just make sure you protect yourself from the blades!
6. Sweat Towels
Dear God do I sweat. I’m basically swimming off the court after a game. That’s why I always make sure to bring a quick-dry sweat towel to help dry me off. It’s good to have a couple of small ones for your racket grip and one for your face. If you’re anything like me you’ll need a big one for your body too! Especially if you live in a hot climate. I can’t imagine how you guys in Asia cope with that heat – I would literally melt.
7. Badminton Grips
Always have a badminton grip handy! While generally, you’ll know when to change the grip, it’s nice to have the option to change it when you want to, rather than when you have to. And having one to hand means you don’t have to wait for delivery! Don’t let it get to a point where it looks like it’s basically a rag!
Personally, I use Alien Pros Badminton Grips. You can also get a 15% discount when you use the discount code “shuttlesmash“. Unlike other grips, they are colourful, patterned and help you stand out on the court!
Of course, if you like the plain look of the typical grips out there there’s plenty of options! And they’re all pretty similar so don’t be afraid to try some of the cheaper brands. The only real difference is the texture. So whatever you like, make sure you have a couple in your bag!
8. Change of Clothes
Don’t be that guy who doesn’t bring a change of clothes. You play badminton for three hours then go to the pub looking like a sewer rat! Doesn’t need to be anything fancy but for the love of god at least change your t-shirt and put some tracksuits on. The last thing I need is to be squeezed into a booth with you while you lube up the whole right side of my body with yours.
9. Sweat Bag
And you better be putting those sweaty clothes somewhere that isn’t your badminton bag. Or at least a separate bag in your badminton bag. Why would you want to contaminate your bag with that?! Not only will your have smelly shoes, but now your whole bag is smelly, rendering anything else you put in there toxic! Something small like a drawstring bag which you can carry around separately would help keep that badminton bag fresh and everything else inside it! Alternatively, even a plastic bag would do the job!
10. Shuttlecocks
Don’t you hate turning up to a session you’ve arranged with your friends and none of you has any shuttles? But you do have that plastic shuttle that’s been sitting at the bottom of your bag for the last three years. It’s going to be a crap session. But luckily you read this post and managed to keep a spare tube in your bag. You’re welcome. This is an essential item for your badminton bag.
Obviously which shuttles you have is up to you, whether that’s plastics or feathers. My personal choice are AS-30’s from Yonex. You can even get hybrid shuttles nowadays that try to blend the flight quality of feathers with the durability of plastics.
11. Water Bottle
Ever turned up to play and you’ve had a particularly tough game only to come off the court and remember your water bottle sitting on the kitchen counter at home. Now you have to spend £2.50 on a bottle of water from the vending machine! Ain’t nobody got time for that!
Just make sure you fill your water and pack it the night before! Or leave your water bottle in there. Worst-case scenario, at least you can fill it up from the water fountain, even if it is a tiny inconvenience.
You can simply recycle the plastic bottle you’ve been using for the past 5 years (not judging). Or you can get a nice bottle to go with your bright badminton bag! Having a reusable bottle is not only environmentally friendly but also easier to keep clean and hygenic!
Conclusion
That’s my list of essential items for your badminton bag! Did I miss anything? What do you include in your bag? Please let me know in the comments below!
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I enjoyed reading this…in my bag I also keep a couple of packs of ‘magic ice’ just in case.
Trying to figure out what that is! I think it’s the instant cooling packs?!