Improving Low-Serve Accuracy in Badminton Using Fine Motor Strengthening with Instructional Video and Proprioceptive Training

Abstract

The low serve is a fundamental badminton skill that reflects a player’s control, precision, and ability to strategically initiate play. However, inconsistent execution highlights the need for effective training interventions, leading this study to examine the effects of fine motor strengthening exercises with instructional videos and of proprioceptive training exercises on participants’ low-serve accuracy. A quasi-experimental, non-equivalent pretest–posttest active comparator design was employed, involving 60 participants (30 per group). Low-serve accuracy was measured using an adapted badminton service accuracy test focusing on the low serve. Results revealed that participants initially demonstrated a good level of low-serve accuracy; significant within-group improvements were observed in both groups, indicating that each intervention was effective in enhancing performance; and ANCOVA results showed no significant difference between the two groups after controlling for pretest scores, indicating that fine motor strengthening exercises with instructional videos and proprioceptive training exercises were comparably effective in improving posttest performance. These findings suggest that guided instruction and sensorimotor-based training approaches are effective routes to improving low-serve accuracy, and that the choice between them can be guided by available resources. It is recommended that Physical Education practitioners incorporate structured instructional videos and proprioceptive drills alongside skill training to enhance accuracy outcomes. The study supports motor learning and coordination theories and provides practical implications for enhancing skill instruction in Physical Education.