Short answer: most badminton injuries are not the dramatic ones. The knee, the ankle and the shoulder account for the bulk of them, and the majority build up over weeks rather than arriving in a single bad landing. Manual care can help the stiff, movement-related side of that picture — an ankle that no longer bends forward properly, a shoulder that catches on the smash, a mid-back that has stopped rotating. It cannot repair a torn ligament, and no chiropractor should pretend otherwise.
Badminton is Malaysia’s national sport and one of its most common sources of joint pain
Walk past any sports hall around Segambut, Dutamas, Sri Hartamas or Mont Kiara after 8pm on a weeknight and every court is taken. Most of those players are office workers who have sat for nine hours, driven home through Jalan Kuching traffic, and gone straight into two hours of lunging and jumping with a two-minute warm-up, if that. Long static loading followed by short bursts of explosive movement is where a lot of the injuries I see in clinic come from.
The published numbers match what the courts look like. In a study of 711 badminton players aged 7 to 22, 60.3% reported at least one badminton-related injury. The knee was the most frequently injured site in both sexes (18.8% in men, 18.6% in women), followed by the ankle (13.4%) and the lower back (Scientific Reports, 2025).
The three joints badminton players bring in most
Knee
Two movements do most of the damage: the lunge at the net and the scissor-kick jump at the rear court. A Danish registry study of 539 badminton players who ruptured their anterior cruciate ligament found the lunge was the most common movement immediately preceding the injury, followed by the scissor-kick jump, with the rear court the single most frequent location on court (Kaldau et al., 2024). The dominant leg tended to be injured on the forehand side and the non-dominant leg on the backhand side.
Most knee complaints are far less serious than an ACL rupture — front-of-knee pain from repeated deceleration, or a patellar tendon that aches for the first ten minutes of a session. Those respond to load management and strength work more than to anything done by hand.
Ankle
The classic badminton ankle sprain happens on landing, often on your own foot or your doubles partner’s. The problem is rarely the first sprain; it is the fourth. Each one can leave the joint stiffer into dorsiflexion — the forward bend you need to lunge deeply — and slower to react, which makes the next sprain more likely. An ankle that was “fine after a week” three years ago is still worth assessing now.
Shoulder
The overhead smash is a fast, repeated, end-range movement, and shoulders not strong enough for it complain. A systematic review of overhead athletes identified the modifiable risk factors as loss or excess of range of motion, rotator cuff weakness, and training load (Tooth et al., Sports Health, 2020). Two of those three are strength and workload problems rather than joint problems. Hands-on treatment may make a shoulder feel better; it will not make it strong.
What you feel, and who to see first
| What you notice | Common cause in badminton | Sensible first step |
|---|---|---|
| Ankle rolled and swollen, but you can walk on it | Lateral ankle sprain | Assessment; imaging if you cannot bear weight |
| Ankle keeps rolling, months later | Chronic ankle instability, lost dorsiflexion | Chiropractor or physiotherapist |
| Front-of-knee ache, worst on the first few lunges | Patellar tendinopathy | Progressive loading, not passive treatment alone |
| Loud pop, knee swells within an hour | Possible ACL or meniscal tear | Hospital or orthopaedic surgeon, same day |
| Shoulder pain only on the smash | Rotator cuff overload | Chiropractor or physiotherapist, plus strength work |
| Mid-back stiffness, rotates one way but not the other | Thoracic joint restriction | Chiropractor |
Red flags — go to a hospital, not to a chiropractor
Some of these need a doctor the same day. If any apply, do not book a chiropractic appointment first.
- An audible pop in the knee, followed by swelling within an hour
- You cannot take four steps on the injured leg, or there is bone tenderness directly over the ankle bone
- The knee locks, catches, or gives way underneath you
- Visible deformity of a joint, or an obvious change in the shape of a limb
- Numbness, pins and needles, or weakness spreading down the arm or leg
- Calf pain with swelling, warmth and redness, particularly after a long flight or a period in a cast
- Fever together with a hot, swollen joint
For emergencies in this part of Kuala Lumpur, Hospital Kuala Lumpur on Jalan Pahang runs a 24-hour emergency department, and there are private emergency departments closer to Segambut and Mont Kiara. Chest pain, breathlessness, or a head knock with confusion always go to an emergency department, never to a clinic.
What chiropractic care can and cannot do for a badminton injury
The honest version: chiropractic care does not heal ligaments or tendons. What it can do is restore movement at joints that have become restricted — a stiff ankle, a mid-back that will not rotate, a hip that will not extend — so that the rest of your rehabilitation becomes possible. A chiropractic adjustment is a reasonable tool for that. So is sports massage for the soft-tissue tightness that comes with heavy court hours, and dry needling for specific trigger points.
None of that replaces loading. If your patellar tendon hurts, the evidence points to progressive strengthening as the main treatment. If a surgeon needs to look at your knee, you need a surgeon. And if your rehabilitation is mostly exercise prescription, a physiotherapist may be the better fit — the two professions are separately regulated in Malaysia and do genuinely different things, as set out in chiropractor versus physiotherapist.
How chiropractic is regulated in Malaysia
Chiropractic is one of seven practice areas recognised under the Traditional and Complementary Medicine Act 2016 (Act 775), regulated by the T&CM Council under the Ministry of Health, with practitioner registration in force since 1 March 2021 (MOH Traditional and Complementary Medicine Division). Physiotherapy sits elsewhere entirely, under the Allied Health Professions Act 2016 (Act 774) and the Malaysian Allied Health Professions Council.
Public awareness of this is low: a survey of 440 adults in the Klang Valley found only 4.8% were aware of the law governing chiropractic in Malaysia (Journal of Chiropractic Humanities, 2023). It is worth asking any practitioner you see — including me — about their registration before they put hands on you.
What an assessment costs
At Chiropractic House in Suria @ North Kiara, off Jalan Kuching, a first session is RM250 to RM410 depending on what the assessment and treatment involve. Follow-up sessions cost less. We are a cash-pay clinic and do not bill insurers directly, but we issue receipts and clinical documentation for patients who want to claim themselves — the practicalities are covered in the article on chiropractic insurance coverage in Malaysia.
Frequently asked questions
Should I stop playing badminton completely while an injury settles?
Usually not. Complete rest tends to make tendon problems worse rather than better. More often the answer is fewer or shorter sessions, or singles swapped for doubles for a few weeks. Complete rest is appropriate for acute sprains and for anything a doctor has told you to rest.
Is it the court surface or my shoes?
Both matter, but neither is usually the main factor. Worn court shoes reduce grip and cushioning, and plenty of halls around KL are humid enough that moisture on the floor becomes a genuine slip risk. The more common driver is a sudden jump in playing volume — one session a week becoming three because a league started.
My ankle sprain was two years ago and it still feels weak. Is it too late?
No. Chronic ankle instability responds to balance and strength training even years afterwards, and lost ankle dorsiflexion is usually recoverable. It takes months rather than weeks, and the work is mostly yours rather than mine.
Do I need an X-ray or MRI before coming in?
Usually no. Imaging is indicated when there are red flags, when a fracture is suspected, or when a decision about surgery is being made. If your presentation suggests imaging is needed, you should be referred for it rather than treated.
Can chiropractic prevent badminton injuries?
There is no good evidence that chiropractic care on its own prevents sports injuries. What does have supporting evidence is structured warm-up, progressive strength work, and sensible increases in training load. Manual care is best understood as one part of managing a problem you already have, not as insurance against a future one.
If you want it looked at
If a badminton niggle has lasted more than two or three weeks, or you have quietly been playing around it, have it assessed. You can get in touch with the clinic. If any of the red flags above apply, go to a hospital first.
Medical disclaimer: this article is general information, not a diagnosis or a treatment plan. Musculoskeletal pain has many causes and some of them are serious. Please see a qualified healthcare professional about your own symptoms, and seek urgent medical care if any of the red flags described above apply to you.
Written by Eugene Gan, Chiropractor, Bachelor of Science (Hons) Chiropractic, accredited by the Council on Chiropractic Education Australasia (CCEA). Chiropractic House, Suria @ North Kiara, off Jalan Kuching, Kuala Lumpur.
