What Your Badminton Score Line Says About Your Game

When you play badminton, the score line of a game can be very telling as to your skill level compared to your opponent’s. Winning 21 to 18 is very different from winning 21 to 10. Here’s a fun little table I came up with to convey what each of the score lines mean. Don’t take it too seriously, badminton is all about having fun - even if you lose!

Your Score	Opponent's Score	Meaning
30	29	Amazing game, this only happens several times in a lifetime - essentially once in a blue moon! You and your opponent are equally matched and this was truly anyone's game. Neither of you could pull away by 2 points from each other. The outcome of the game came down to nerves and luck.
30	28	This game went the distance. You finally triumphed in a long and difficult battle. Both you and your opponent gave everything into the game. Well done.
29	27	You thought of losing the point on purpose to get to the ultimate score of 30 points, but you decided against it. Better safe than sorry. You'd rather win the game instead of taking a gamble.
28	26	The game finally ended. This was one long game and each player probably had a chance to win it. The badminton gods smiled upon you today.
27	25	Very close game. Was it a fluke that you won? Seems like any slight change to a point could've turned the tide. A net roll could make or break the game.
26	24	You had to win 5 "extra" points from 21. That's pretty much 25% more points than you'd normally have to. Hope you have good endurance for the next game!
25	23	Wow, you're getting into the territory of very rare games. Both of you were able to hold your nerve - or maybe both of you couldn't hold it. Anyways, it's been tense for quite a few points now until you were finally able to seal the deal.
24	22	Your opponent couldn't take the pressure after a couple of tense points. It was a good match nonetheless.
23	21	Things started to get tense around the 20-20 mark. Seems like you were able to hold your nerve better than your opponent.
22	20	Your opponent tried to challenge you for the game but you fought back for the win.
21	19	Phew, just won without needing to play "extra points". Not an easy win by any means but you got there which is what matters. You better plan out some changes to your next game to see how to win more comfortably.
21	18	You won with the slimmest of buffer room. Still a little too close for comfort. A small lapse in focus could've lostl lose the game for you.
21	17	Your opponent had some hope for a comeback and you said nope. Probably still a bit too close for comfort.
21	16	Pretty good, but you could do better. Your opponent is still within your skill level and can reverse the results the next time you play.
21	15	A somewhat comfortable win, you probably didn't have to try that hard to win but still had to focus to make sure you had some margin for error.
21	14	Congrats, you won the game quite comfortably against your opponent. Seven points is the magic number to consider yourself to have played a level higher than your opponent in the game. Read An In-Depth Analysis on the Badminton Scoring System and How To Use It To Your Advantage to fully understand why this is the case.
21	13	You were never in trouble of losing this game. Your opponent got stuck in one gear and you took advantage of it and they never recovered.
21	12	You won points in this game at will. You controlled the pace and rhythm of the game.
21	11	You were probably thinking of trying out some crazy trick shots before the game ended since you had such a comfortable lead. Too bad your opponent made a mistake before you could try it.
21	10	Dang, your opponent got to double digits. Oh well, you still got more than twice their score.
21	9	Won the game right before your opponent got to double digits! Are you trying to humiliate them?
21	8	Ok, enough saving face for your opponent, it's about time for you to end the game and show them who's boss.
21	7	You were 2 levels above your opponent in this game. You coasted to victory. Every point your opponent won, you decided to win 3 - just because it was easy.
21	6	Seems like your opponent has a couple of good shots that caught you off guard. They're not that frequent though.
21	5	Dang, you're trying to help your opponent save face but you couldn't help them out enough. They just keep making mistakes and you can't give them enough points without just hitting into the net.
21	4	You're just playing with your food. Tried a couple trick shots that didn't quite work out huh?
21	3	Why are you out there bullying people? Lord have mercy. Have you heard of "saving face" for your opponent? You a savage.
21	2	Ouch. Are you playing against someone new to badminton? Or maybe an empty court? Doesn't seem like a fair match here.
21	1	French Fried. Oh so close to the bagel. You probably lost a point to luck or felt bad and gave your opponent a point.
21	0	Bageled. The holy grail of score lines. Your opponent must now call you Sensei until they can beat you.