Many play cricket, basketball, soccer, or tennis. Many of them watch these sports on TV, and many buy tickets to their games and matches. But very few play badminton. Even a smaller number buys a ticket to watch a game.
As a player myself, 1 can assure you that it is the misconception of common people that badminton is merely a backyard sport. Badminton began as a leisurely backyard sport and evolved to competitive sport ranging to Olympic levels.
Badminton originated thousands of years ago in India, before many of the other sports were commercialized. It is believed to have evolved from a children’s game known as battledore and shuttlecock, the battledore being a paddle and the shuttlecock a small-feathered cork, now called a “bird” or “birdie.” The objective was simply to keep the bird in the air as long as possible.