Bundesliga

Matchday 21 – the penultimate matchday of the regular season of the Table Tennis Bundesliga (TTBL) – is about to begin. Many key questions this season have already been answered – but not which teams will face off in the semifinals of the Liebherr TTBL Final4. The decision could come in the next few days. All matches will be broadcast live on Dyn.

Post SV Mühlhausen – TSV Bad Königshofen

A nightmare season is coming to a redeeming end for TSV Bad Königshofen: With just two wins, the Lower Franconians finished the preliminary round of the Table Tennis Bundesliga (TTBL) in last place—since then, they’ve seen a modest uptick in form with three more wins and have now secured their place in the league thanks to TSV Windsbach’s decision not to pursue promotion. In the penultimate game of the season, Bad Königshofen now travels to Post SV Mühlhausen looking to avenge their 1-3 loss from the first leg. Last November, Kay Stumper in particular proved unbeatable with two wins. But Post SV is also hoping for a redeeming end to the season. In their final home game, Mühlhausen wants to bid a fitting farewell to their fans before wrapping up the season with a match in Dortmund. With 16:24 points, the Thuringians sit in eighth place in the middle of the standings.

TTC OE Clarity-Telefonie Systeme Bad Homburg – TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen

The top four spots are already out of reach for TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen, so the reigning German champions are now aiming to defend their fifth-place finish in their remaining two matches. With 20:20 points, Ochsenhausen currently holds a two-point lead over both Fulda and Dortmund (both 18:22). “We made good use of the break, were able to train properly, and now want to give it our all once again. Our goal is clear: We want to win the match and secure fifth place,” says Andreas Levenko ahead of the match against TTC OE Clarity-Telefonie Systeme Bad Homburg. Alongside Levenko, the TTF squad is expected to consist of Iulian Chirita and Leonardo Iizuka on Tuesday; Shunsuke Togami (injured) and Tiago Abiodun (hip surgery) remain sidelined. Bad Homburg has already secured its place in the league for several weeks, and now aims to secure the nominal non-relegation spot as well. With 14:26 points, the Taunus team is currently tenth in the standings, two points ahead of Bad Königshofen (12:28) and two points behind both Mühlhausen and Grenzau (both 16:24).

Borussia Düsseldorf – TTC Zugbrücke Grenzau

Borussia Düsseldorf has already secured its spot in the Liebherr TTBL Final4, and now the record champion is aiming to choose its semifinal opponent. The team that finishes first in the main round gets to choose between the third- and fourth-place clubs. If Düsseldorf also wins against TTC Zugbrücke Grenzau on Wednesday, Borussia will clinch first place. For Grenzau, however, it’s now all about their final standings—the team had already secured its place in the league a few weeks ago thanks to strong performances. With four straight wins, including a recent 3-2 victory in Fulda, TTC has been in top form and moved up to ninth place with 16-24 points. “The team can play with total freedom” in the last two games of the season, says TTC manager Markus Ströher. “That makes us a little proud, but by no means satisfied. The guys want to continue the streak and head into the summer break with two more strong performances.”

1.FC Saarbrücken TT – SV Werder Bremen

The top match of Matchday 21 takes place on Wednesday evening, when 1. FC Saarbrücken TT hosts SV Werder Bremen starting at 7 p.m. – meaning the fourth-place team faces off against the second-place team. Both teams have already secured their spots in the Liebherr TTBL Final4, so the match will offer a preview of the top event on May 30–31 at the Süwag ENERGIE Arena in Frankfurt. (If you’d like to be there live and cheer them on, click here to visit the official TTBL ticket shop.) Bremen and Saarbrücken might even face off again then. So far this season, Werder has had a slight edge—with 30:10 points, the Hanseatic side is four points ahead of the cup winner (26:14). The decisive factor here is the first leg: In early October, Bremen celebrated a 3-2 victory over the Saarland team, which fielded its strongest lineup, thanks in part to a 3-1 win by Marcelo Aguirre over Fan Zhendong.

TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell – Borussia Dortmund

Thursday evening will feature a clash between two neighbors in the standings: TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell and Borussia Dortmund, currently sixth and seventh in the table, respectively. Both teams currently have 18:22 points, and for both, the final stretch of the season is all about ending the season on the best possible note heading into the summer break. While Fulda recently made a statement with a 3-2 win in Saarbrücken, Dortmund has suffered three straight losses, effectively dashing their hopes of reaching the semifinals. “We’ll give it our all once again to stay in the top half of the table and, above all, to say goodbye to our fans with a great performance in our final home game before the summer,” BVB coach Evgeny Fadeev had already announced following the most recent 0-3 loss to Bremen.

ASC Grünwettersbach – TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt

By securing a spot in the Liebherr TTBL Final4, TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt has already achieved a historic feat. In the final stretch of the regular season, they could go one better: After finishing fourth in the 2018/19 season, Benedikt Duda and his teammates are on track for the best finish in the club’s history. Bergneustadt currently sits in third place with 28:12 points, even ahead of title favorite Saarbrücken (26:14). The Saarland team is one of the TTC’s potential opponents in the Final4 semifinals. ASC Grünwettersbach, on the other hand, was recently able to breathe a sigh of relief. While the Baden-based team would have preferred to secure their place in the league on the court, given their recent results, they are likely reasonably satisfied with the current situation. Due to second-division champion TSV Windsbach’s decision not to move up, Grünwettersbach will remain in the TTBL for the 2026–27 season as well. “It’s important to learn from this season so we can do better in the future,” said Ricardo Walther, noting that the team has now gone about five months without a win.

Match day #21 at a glance

Tuesday, April 14
6:30 p.m.: Post SV Mühlhausen – TSV Bad Königshofen
7:00 p.m.: TTC OE Clarity-Telefonie Systeme Bad Homburg – TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen

Wednesday, April 15
6:30 p.m.: Borussia Düsseldorf – TTC Zugbrücke Grenzau
7:00 p.m.: 1. FC Saarbrücken TT – SV Werder Bremen

Thursday, April 16
6:30 p.m.: TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell – Borussia Dortmund
7:00 p.m.: ASC Grünwettersbach – TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt

All matches will be broadcast live on Dyn.

Header photo: 1. FC Saarbrücken TT's Patrick Franziska (by BeLa Sportfoto)