Will the expanded definition of BWF’s ‘service undue delay’ Clause 9.1.1, impact Chirag Shetty-Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, PV Sindhu and Lakshya Sen? | Badminton News

It might just be a split two seconds to control breathing pace, right before serving. But the precious moments when badminton players gather some calm before exploding into rallies, will now be minutely watched, to keep track of ‘service undue delay.’
Beyond the high service strictures, this could potentially prove another headache for Indian shuttlers, like Chirag Shetty, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, PV Sindhu and even Lakshya Sen and HS Prannoy.
An update to players on the Badminton World Federation website dated December 17, saw a further expanding of Clause 9.1.1 of the Laws of Badminton, as a reminder to players of what lies in store in 2025.
A season-ending proposal to the Events Committee and Council related to continuous play, was reiterated after discussions the Umpire Assessment Panel on Clause 9.1 that deals with ‘correct serving”. The Laws of Badminton, Clause 9.1.1, state that neither side shall cause undue delay to the delivery of the service once the server and receiver are ready for the service.
The sport that is perennially trying to hurry up matches, even as durations and rallies get longer in the 21-point, 3-set scoring format, nailed down three instances of what might amount to ‘undue delay”. Chair umpires have been increasingly reminding players to get a rally started with smallest pauses, and this is the latest rationing of the micro-seconds, separating it from “preparation”.
These included indicating with hand that a player wasn’t ready, being frozen in serving stance while doing nothing, and a not clearly defined “side-to-side motion.”
BWF stated: “This means that once players are in a position to serve and receive, any excessive delay is undue delay, whether it is a player holding their hand up indicating they are not ready, standing in a position ready to serve and doing nothing, or the side-to-side motion.”
BWF sought to draw a dinction between stance and preparation. “Standing doing nothing or side-to-side motions are not preparation; preparation has already happened before the players stand ready to serve or receive,” it said.
It is unclear if the “side-to-side motion” means a swivel serve, which is common for several players on the circuit including famously Chirag Shetty. The ‘standing, doing nothing’ as described BWF has several practitioners, including Viktor Axelsen, Kodai Naraoka and Kunlavut Vitidsarn as well as many others. In the latter stages of the game, it can be misconstrued as delays.
The swivel serve, though, has been a genuine variation, though it is not clear if it falls under ‘side-to-side’ movement.

The BWF proscribed: “Please share with your players, coaches, and team leadership, so they are aware of the approach of Umpires in calling undue delays in upcoming tournaments.” It added, “Umpires may call servers or receivers for these types of undue delays in upcoming tournaments, using their best judgment.”

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