Saarbrücken defeat Düsseldorf: vital win for playoff hopes

1. FC Saarbrücken Tischtennis are fighting to keep their playoff chances alive and were not to be deterred by the table leaders from Düsseldorf, ultimately securing a strong 3:0 away win. 

The defending champions did not have a great day against the Champions League winners today, as was evident right from the first singles match. In the encounter between Anton Källberg and Darko Jorgic, the Swede never managed to find his rhythm and ultimately suffered a surprisingly decisive 0:3 defeat. ‘Anton had issues with his backhand today. It was not his day’, was head coach Danny Heister’s sober analysis of his player’s performance. This was only Källberg’s second defeat in this Bundesliga season, making the unusually definitive scoreline even more surprising.

In the second singles match, Timo Boll faced his long-time friend and national team colleague Patrick Franziska. For Boll, who will be retiring from an impressive career at the end of this season, this match on home turf in front of 1,100 spectators in a sold-out ARAG CenterCourt was a very special occasion. But rather than an emotional highlight, spectators were instead treated to clear dominance by Franziska. 43-year-old Boll did not manage to put his opponent under any real pressure in any of the three sets, and crucially failed to gain a single set. Fans were forced to watch helpless as the past master remained out of luck, despite all his efforts.

We firmly believe that we will still reach the playoffs. Today was of course a hugely important win in achieving this.

Patrick Franziska

After the break, responsibility for turning things around fell on Kay Stumper’s shoulders. The 22 year old, who is generally considered a talented hopeful prospect, initially had a promising start to his match against Romanian Eduard Ionescu (just 20 years old). Stumper was able to gain the first set, but Ionescu showed strong nerves and shrewd strategy as things went on. Stumper was unable to match up to his opponent’s powerful play and ultimately lost 1:3, sealing the Düsseldorf player’s first home defeat of the season.

‘Sometimes that just happens in a duel between two top teams’, manager Andreas Preuß commented on his team’s disappointing performance. ‘Last week you win 3:0 in Montpellier and then you lose at home to Saarbrücken in an equally matched competition. I have always said that we have to fight for every point and are far from done. There are still seven games before the playoffs and we need to fight properly in every single match.’ His words emphasise how unpredictable a Bundesliga season can be, and that even a title favourite can have lulls.

For the visiting team from Saarbrücken, this crucial win was hugely important. In terms of the table, the team have managed to prevent their points gap behind similarly triumphant TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell from getting any bigger. The battle for fourth place and a spot in the playoffs this remains wide open. ‘We got off to a better start than Düsseldorf in the match today’, Patrick Franziska explained afterwards. The former Düsseldorf player, who has now become a key member of the Saarbrücken team, sounded optimistic: ‘We firmly believe that we will still reach the playoffs. Today was of course a hugely important win in achieving this.’

With this win, Saarbrücken have not only set the tone for the title battle, but also demonstrated that they can keep up with the best teams in the league.