Pemain itu memukul bulu tangkis dengan pukulan cepat.

In Malay, demonstratives usually come after the noun.

• pemain itu = that player
• rumah ini = this house

So the pattern is:

• noun + ini = this ...
• noun + itu = that ...

Also, in many contexts, itu can make the noun feel definite, so pemain itu may be understood as the player as well as that player, depending on context.

Yes. Memukul comes from the root pukul, which means hit or strike.

Malay often adds the active verb prefix meN- to a root:

• pukul → memukul

Here, the p in pukul drops after the prefix, which is a normal sound change in Malay word formation.

So:

• pukul = hit / strike
• memukul = to hit / is hitting

In this sentence, memukul is an active transitive verb, so it takes a direct object: bulu tangkis.

This is a good question, because it can be a little tricky.

In many contexts, bulu tangkis refers to badminton, the sport. Because of that, memukul bulu tangkis can sound a bit odd if taken literally, since you do not usually hit badminton; you hit the shuttlecock.

Depending on region and context, learners may see bulu tangkis used in ways that seem to point to the shuttlecock, but many speakers would prefer a more specific word such as kok for the object.

So if the intended meaning is The player hit the shuttlecock with a fast stroke, a more natural version might be:

• Pemain itu memukul kok dengan pukulan cepat.

If the intended meaning is about the sport itself, then bermain bulu tangkis or bermain badminton would be more natural than memukul bulu tangkis.

Dengan usually means with or by means of.

So:

• dengan pukulan cepat = with a fast stroke

This phrase describes the manner of the action by using a noun phrase:

• pukulan = stroke / hit
• cepat = fast / quick

It is slightly different from simply saying quickly. The sentence is focusing on the stroke itself as being fast, not just the overall action.

They are similar, but not identical.

• dengan pukulan cepat = with a fast stroke
• dengan cepat = quickly

So:

• Pemain itu memukul kok dengan pukulan cepat focuses on the kind of hit/stroke
• Pemain itu memukul kok dengan cepat focuses on how quickly the action was done

In English, the first is more noun-based, while the second is more adverb-like.

In Malay, adjectives usually come after the noun they describe.

So:

• pukulan cepat = fast stroke
• rumah besar = big house
• kereta merah = red car

This is one of the big word-order differences between Malay and English.

Pukul is the root word meaning hit or strike.

Pukulan is a noun formed with the suffix -an, and it means something like:

• a hit
• a strike
• a stroke

So in this sentence:

• memukul = to hit
• pukulan = a hit / stroke

This is a very common pattern in Malay: a root becomes a noun with -an.

Malay does not have direct equivalents of English articles the and a/an.

Instead, definiteness usually comes from:

• context
• word order
• words like ini and itu

So:

• pemain itu often means that player or the player
• seorang pemain would mean a player

In your sentence, pemain itu is definite because of itu.

It is understandable, but it may sound slightly unnatural depending on what exactly is meant by bulu tangkis.

If you mean the player hit the shuttlecock, a more natural sentence could be:

• Pemain itu memukul kok dengan cepat.
• Pemain itu memukul kok dengan pukulan pantas.

If you mean the player was playing badminton, then a better sentence would be:

• Pemain itu bermain bulu tangkis dengan pantas.
• Pemain itu bermain badminton dengan pantas.

So the original sentence is useful for grammar study, but in real usage, many speakers might choose a slightly different wording.