Bundesliga

Borussia Düsseldorf were not fazed by their cup exit at the Leapmotor Cup Grand Opening and remain unbeaten in the Table Tennis Bundesliga (TTBL). On Saturday, the record champions secured a commanding 3–1 victory in their clash against TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt. This marked Düsseldorf’s fourth win in their fourth league match, allowing them to retain top spot in the table for the time being.

Borussia once again demonstrated their strength on Saturday at the ARAG CenterCourt, securing a commanding victory over Bergneustadt. With this 3–1 win, Düsseldorf remain unbeaten in the new TTBL season and, having secured the maximum number of points, sit at the top of the table for the time being. “Fan lost to Romain Ruiz and Benedikt Duda last season, but he’s been in incredible form in training. We prepared thoroughly for the matches and he secured the two points here,” said Borussia coach Danny Heister after the match.

Star signing Fan Zhendong made his debut in a Borussia shirt at the home venue, the ARAG CenterCourt, and immediately celebrated two victories. Against the Frenchman Romain Ruiz, he dominated the match from the outset, giving his opponent hardly any chances and winning comfortably 3–0. With his fast and direct style of play, the Olympic champion also showed strong nerves in the decisive moments.

Four match points saved, one needed – Duda wins thriller against Källberg

Benedikt Duda then provided the most spectacular moment of the match. The clash against Anton Källberg once again turned into a real thriller. After the Swede had beaten Duda twice in the fifth set last season, this time the Bergneustadt player got off to the better start and took a 1–0 lead. Källberg, however, turned the match around to lead 2–1, before Duda forced a deciding set with an 11–9 win in the fourth set.

In the decider, Källberg was already leading 6–0, but Duda fought his way back to narrow the gap to 7–6. At 10–7, the Swede had three match points. Duda, however, showed nerves of steel, fending off all three and refusing to give in even at 10–11. In the tie-break, the Bergneustadt player finally earned his first match point at 12–11 and took it. After a spectacular rally, Duda clinched the point to make it 13–11, securing a jubilant 3–2 victory.

Dang Qiu and Fan Zhendong seal Düsseldorf’s victory

In the third match of the day, Dang Qiu faced Adrien Rassenfosse. The 29-year-old German international gave the Belgian no chance, winning comfortably in three sets. With scores of 11–4, 11–5 and 11–2, Qiu made short work of his opponent, paving the way for the clash between Fan Zhendong and Benedikt Duda.

Following the dramatic 3–2 victory over Anton Källberg, Duda faced the top Chinese player. Despite some aggressive opening moves, Duda rarely found his rhythm against the Olympic champion and ultimately lost 0–3 in straight sets. Fan Zhendong thus sealed Borussia’s 3–1 team victory.

Düsseldorf back on track

Given last season’s defeat against TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt, there was great joy at Düsseldorf’s success. “I believe that when we play without pressure, we play incredibly good table tennis,” said Heister. With the victory over Bergneustadt, Borussia also managed to get their own back: “We’ve got our own back, and that makes me incredibly happy!”

For Düsseldorf, this victory means they top the table for the time being, whilst Bergneustadt remain in the bottom third of the table following the defeat. On Sunday, three more matches are on the programme to round off the fourth matchday: at 2 pm, TSV Bad Königshofen host TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen; at 3.30 pm, TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell face TTC Zugbrücke Grenzau; and at 5 pm, ASC Grünwettersbach take on Post SV Mühlhausen.

Matchday 4 overview

TTC OE Clarity Telefonie-Systeme Bad Homburg – Borussia Dortmund 2:3
Csaba Andras – Cedric Nuytinck 3:1 (9:11, 11:9, 11:6, 11:9)
Juan Perez – Anders Lind 0:3 (14:16, 8:11, 8:11)
Ivor Ban – Wim Verdonschot 0:3 (7:11, 7:11, 6:11)
Csaba Andras – Anders Lind 3:2 (11:13, 11:7, 11:6, 8:11, 11:9)
Benno Oehme/Ivor Ban – Adam Szudi/Cedric Nuytinck 2:3 (6:11, 11:9, 6:11, 11:5, 6:11)

FC Saarbrücken TT – SV Werder Bremen 1:3
Eduard Ionescu – Mattias Karlsson 1:3 (8:11, 6:11, 11:6, 6:11)
Patrick Franziska – Kirill Gerassimenko 3:0 (11:3, 11:4, 11:9)
Alvaro Robles – Irvin Bertrand 1:3 (11:8, 8:11, 9:11, 13:15)
Eduard Ionescu – Kirill Gerassimenko 2:3 (7:11, 11:3, 9:11, 13:11, 6:11)

Borussia Düsseldorf – TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt 3:1
Fan Zhendong – Romain Ruiz 3:0 (11:7, 11:7, 11:8)
Anton Källberg – Benedikt Duda 2:3 (7:11, 11:6, 12:10, 9:11, 11:13)
Dang Qiu – Adrien Rassenfosse 3:0 (11:4, 11:5, 11:2)
Fan Zhendong – Benedikt Duda 3:0 (11:8, 11:8, 11:8)

Sunday, September 6
2 p.m.: TSV Bad Königshofen – TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen
3:30 p.m.: TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell – TTC Zugbrücke Grenzau
5 p.m.: ASC Grünwettersbach – Post SV Mühlhausen

All matches will be broadcast live on Dyn.

Featured image above: Fan Zhendong (Borussia Düsseldorf). Photo: BeLaSportfoto.