Bad Königshofen celebrates unexpected victory in Saarbrücken
In the sixth attempt, TSV Bad Königshofen managed to win for the first time at 1. FC Saarbrücken TT: Led by Kilian Ort, the team from Lower Franconia prevailed 3:1 on Friday at the start of the 6th matchday of the Table Tennis Bundesliga (TTBL).
TSV Bad Königshofen traveled to Saarland with personnel worries in their luggage, which made their third win of the season on Friday evening all the more surprising: at fearful opponents 1. FC Saarbrücken TT, where the Lower Franconians had never managed a win before, the guests celebrated a 3:1 and thus the third win from the most recent four matches. With now 6:6 points Bad Königshofen climbed for the time being on the sixth rank of the table tennis federal league (TTBL). Saarbrücken, on the other hand, missed the jump to second place with its first defeat after five wins in a row across the competition and remains third with 8:4 points.
"The Saarbrücken players were a bit tired after the international competitions," noted Bad-Königshofen coach Koji Itagaki. "But they gave everything. Nevertheless, we also had a bit of luck on our side today." Saarbrücken coach Wang Zhi said, "Unfortunately Cedric was a bit unlucky, he could have won his match. We're now trying to put the game behind us as quickly as possible and step on the gas again on Sunday."
Kilian Ort beats Patrick Franziska and Tomas Polansky
Man of the evening was Kilian Ort: Since Yukiya Uda and Martin Allegro were not available and Bastian Steger was not yet in full possession of his strength after injury, the 26-year-old came into action on position one. And he met this challenge with flying colors: After Tomas Polansky had given the Saarbrücken team the lead with a 3:1 (10:12, 11:7, 11:8, 11:8) win over Filip Zeljko, Ort tied the match with his 3:1 (11:8, 9:11, 14:12, 11:9) win over Patrick Franziska. In the top singles, Ort finally defeated Polansky 3:0 (11:3, 11:9, 11:8) - which made Bad Königshofen's away win perfect. On position three, Steger had won 3:1 (11:13, 12:10, 11:4, 11:9) against Cedric Nuytinck between the two Ort performances.
The next match for 1. FC Saarbrücken TT is already on Sunday: The reigning cup winner will fight for another place in the Final Four against ASV Grünwettersbach starting at 1 pm. TSV Bad Königshofen will next be challenged on November 27, when Borussia Düsseldorf will be the guest in Lower Franconia. The TTBL continues on Saturday, November 12, when SV Werder Bremen hosts 1. FSV Mainz 05 at 6 p.m. All matches will be broadcast live on the Spontent channels on Twitch.
The 6th matchday in overview
1. FC Saarbrücken TT – TSV Bad Königshofen 1:3
Tomas Polansky – Filip Zeljko 3:1 (10:12, 11:7, 11:8, 11:8)
Patrick Franziska – Kilian Ort 1:3 (8:11, 11:9, 12:14, 9:11)
Cedric Nuytinck – Bastian Steger 1:3 (13:11, 10:12, 4:11, 9:11)
Tomas Polansky – Kilian Ort 0:3 (3:11, 9:11, 8:11)
Saturday, November 12
6 p.m.: SV Werder Bremen – 1. FSV Mainz 05
Sunday, November 13
1 p.m.: TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen – Post SV Mühlhausen
3 p.m.: TTC Zugbrücke Grenzau – TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell
5 p.m.: TTC Neu-Ulm – Borussia Düsseldorf
Monday, November 14
7 p.m.: ASV Grünwettersbach – TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt