Bundesliga
Bremen cruise and head into Christmas top of the table
The surprise package of the first half of the season gifted themselves an early present: with a commanding 3–0 at Post SV Mühlhausen, SV Werder Bremen climbed to the summit of the Table Tennis Bundesliga (TTBL). The Thuringians, led by a disappointed Steffen Mengel, missed their big moments and will need points after the break to climb out of the relegation fight.
For Bremen’s Irvin Bertrand, it was a happy return to his former club. “It can’t be better at the moment,” the Frenchman beamed on Dyn after the 3–0 win and the move into first place: “It’s great for all of us. We’ve played well so far.”
Bertrand himself had just sealed the result with a 3–1 over Mengel after only three singles. That it never got closer left veteran Mengel with little to smile about. “The disappointment is pretty big,” he admitted.
Freitas misses the chance to level
Closest to a Mühlhausen point was Marcos Freitas. After a marathon game he took 17–15 to lead 2–1, Kirill Gerassimenko wrested back control and closed it in the fifth. Earlier, Mattias Falck had laid the platform with a four-game win over Kay Stumper.
Two truths now sit side by side for Post SV: in the league, the team is stuck in a relegation scrap with eight points; internationally, they booked a Champions League quarter-final berth on Thursday. “Of course we had travel fatigue, but that’s no excuse. We’re professionals and we wanted to win,” said Mengel.
On Monday, Grenzau and Fulda-Maberzell wrap up the first half. The year 2026 then opens with a highlight: the Liebherr Cup Final Four on 4 January will award the first title of the year. TTBL play resumes on 11 January.
Matchday 11 fixtures
TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen – ASC Grünwettersbach 3:1
Shunsuke Togami – Tobias Hippler 3:0 (11:4, 11:9, 11:6)
Tiago Abiodun – Hiroto Shinozuka 1:3 (8:11, 12:10, 8:11, 9:11)
Iulian Chirita – Tiago Apolonia 3:0 (11:9, 11:9, 11:7)
Shunsuke Togami – Hiroto Shinozuka 3:0 (12:10, 11:7, 11:8)
TSV Bad Königshofen – Borussia Dortmund 2:3
Bastian Steger – Kristian Karlsson 3:2 (11:3, 11:9, 11:4, 10:12, 13:11)
Daniel Habesohn – Anders Lind 2:3 (11:7, 6:11, 11:7, 5:11, 8:11)
Filip Zeljko – Adam Szudi 1:3 (5:11, 11:6, 10:12, 4:11)
Bastian Steger – Anders Lind 3:0 (15:13, 11:8, 11:5)
Zeljko/Habesohn – Karlsson/Szudi 2:3 (9:5, 5:11, 11:9, 11:8, 5:11)
TTC OE Clarity-Tel.Syst.Bad Homburg – TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt 3:1
Jo Yokotani – Leo de Nodrest 3:0 (12:10, 11:3, 11:3)
Juan Perez – Benedikt Duda 3:0 (11:5, 11:8, 11:9)
Ivor Ban – Romain Ruiz 0:3 (4:11, 6:11, 9:11)
Jo Yokotani – Adrien Rassenfosse 3:1 (11:4, 11:7, 5:11, 11:7)
1. FC Saarbrücken TT – Borussia Düsseldorf 3:2
Fan Zhendong – Borgar Haug 3:0 (11:2, 11:5, 12:10)
Patrick Franziska – Kanak Jha 2:3 (11:4, 4:11, 6:11, 11:9, 8:11)
Cedric Meissner – Anton Källberg 2:3 (8:11, 13:15, 12:10, 12:10, 8:11)
Fan Zhendong – Kanak Jha 3:1 (11:3, 6:11, 11:5, 11:5)
Franziska/Meissner – Källberg/Li 3:1 (11:13, 12:10, 11:9, 11:9)
Post SV Mühlhausen – SV Werder Bremen 0:3
Kay Stumper – Mattias Falck 1:3 (9:11, 5:11, 14:12, 9:11)
Marcos Freitas – Kirill Gerassimenko 2:3 (7:11, 11:8, 17:15, 8:11, 2:11)
Steffen Mengel – Irvin Bertrand 1:3 (12:10, 7:11, 11:13, 7:11)
Monday, 22 December
7:00 pm: TTC Zugbrücke Grenzau – TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell
All matches are live on Dyn.
Picture: Irvin Bertrand of SV Werder Bremen (Photo: SV Werder Bremen)
