Pokal

Same line-up, same result: Just like two days ago in the Table Tennis Bundesliga (TTBL), TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen defeated SV Werder Bremen 3:1 in the Dr.-Hans-Liebherr-Sporthalle, this time in the Cup. The tough mission of defending their title is off to a successful start – and Tiago Abiodun celebrated his first-ever win at TTBL level.

As on Friday, Shunsuke Togami set the tone and is quickly becoming a nightmare opponent for Irvin Bertrand. The Frenchman was forced to concede defeat to him for the second time this season – and Togami gladly accepted the congratulations once more. In the opening game, the Japanese star saved a set point before capitalizing on Bertrand’s unforced errors. Even when Bertrand led 6:3 in the third, Togami turned it around and gave Ochsenhausen a 1:0 lead.

Abiodun celebrates breakthrough win

Next came the evening’s surprise: Tiago Abiodun stunned Kirill Gerassimenko in four sets. The Portuguese teenager impressed with precise serves and powerful backhands, even saving two set points in the second. After his 3:1 victory he told Dyn it had been a “very good match” where he managed to stay calm: “Kirill is a very strong player. I want to stay focused and win more matches.” The 17-year-old had previously been without a win at TTBL level.

Falck strikes back

Bremen’s only point came courtesy of Mattias Falck. The Swede battled to a 3:2 win over Iulian Chirita, gaining revenge for his defeat on Friday. Chirita had shown great fighting spirit to force a deciding game, but Falck used his experience to close it out 11:6. “We played against a very strong team that beat us twice in three days. They were a little better, so congratulations to them,” Falck reflected.

Title defense mission underway

The final word once again belonged to Togami, who kept his composure to beat Gerassimenko in straight sets. With scores of 12:10, 11:7 and 12:10, he sealed another 3:1 team victory and guided Ochsenhausen into the quarterfinals. The defending champions are now just one win away from reaching the Final Four, scheduled for January 4, 2026 in Neu-Ulm.

Cup Round of 16 fixtures

TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen – SV Werder Bremen 3:1
Shunsuke Togami – Irvin Bertrand 3:0 (12:10, 11:4, 11:9)
Tiago Abiodun – Kirill Gerassimenko 3:1 (11:5, 12:10, 9:11, 11:2)
Iulian Chirita – Mattias Falck 2:3 (9:11, 11:9, 4:11, 12:10, 6:11)
Shunsuke Togami – Kirill Gerassimenko 3:0 (12:10, 11:7, 12:10)

TSV Bad Königshofen – Borussia Düsseldorf 0:3
Bastian Steger – Anton Källberg 1:3 (7:11, 11:8, 4:11, 7:11)
Andre Bertelsmeier – Dang Qiu 2:3 (4:11, 11:6, 11:8, 4:11, 7:11)
Daniel Habesohn – Kanak Jha 0:3 (7:11, 9:11, 8:11)

TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell – ASC Grünwettersbach 3:0
Jonathan Groth – Adrian Gossow 3:0 (11:8, 11:3, 11:5)
Fanbo Meng – Tobias Hippler 3:1 (9:11, 11:4, 11:4, 12:10)
Dimitrij Ovtcharov – Damian Floro 3:0 (11:8, 11:1, 11:8)

1. FC Saarbrücken TT – Borussia Dortmund 3:0
Fan Zhendong – Adam Szudi 3:0 (11:4, 11:2, 11:7)
Patrick Franziska – Cedric Nuytinck 3:0 (12:10, 11:4, 15:13)
Darko Jorgic – Alberto Mino 3:0 (11:9, 11:5, 11:4)

SV Union Velbert – 1. FSV Mainz 05 3:1
Wim Verdonschot – Nathan Lam 3:0 (11:4, 11:8, 11:6)
Timotius Köchling – Chia-Hung Sun 3:2 (11:4, 10:12, 7:11, 11:8, 11:6)
Anton Limonov – Daniel Berzosa 2:3 (6:11, 8:11, 11:7, 14:12, 7:11)
Wim Verdonschot – Albert Vilardell 3:2 (11:13, 11:4, 11:8, 7:11, 11:6)

1. FC Saarbrücken TT II – TTC OE Clarity Telefonie-Systeme Bad Homburg 1:3
Yuto Muramatsu – Benno Oehme 3:0 (11:9, 11:4, 11:4)
Eduard Ionescu – Csaba Andras 2:3 (11:7, 11:6, 7:11, 4:11, 6:11)
Dennis Klein – Ivor Ban 1:3 (9:11, 9:11, 11:8, 9:11)
Yuto Muramatsu – Csaba Andras 2:3 (10:12, 11:3, 6:11, 14:12, 9:11)

TTC indeland Jülich – TTC Zugbrücke Grenzau 0:3
Laurens Devos – Luka Mladenovic 0:3 (9:11, 10:12, 7:11)
Robin Devos – Feng Yi-Hsin 1:3 (7:11, 15:13, 5:11, 3:11)
Kas van Oost – Samuel Walker 0:3 (3:11, 5:11, 5:11)

Sonntag, 21. September
15 Uhr: Post SV Mühlhausen – TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt

Picture: Tiago Abiodun of TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen (Photo: Nicolai Schaal)