Borussia Düsseldorf signs Olympic participant Kanak Jha
Borussia Düsseldorf has signed US number one Kanak Jha. The 24-year-old will move from TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt to the Rhine for the next 2025/26 season. Jha has signed a contract with the record table tennis champions until June 30, 2027. The three-time Olympian and five-time individual champion of his country is the first new signing for the coming season and will form the core team of the record champions together with Dang Qiu and Anton Källberg.
Kanak Jha can win in Düsseldorf. He proved this at the WTT Feeder Düsseldorf I in April when he defeated An Jaehyun from South Korea, who came third in the World Championships, in the final. The right-hander feels at home in Germany, it has been his second home for years. His career began in 2017 in the 3rd Bundesliga North at TTC Ruhrstadt Herne, a year later he played with FSV Mainz in the 2nd Bundesliga and twelve months later he made his debut in the Bundesliga (TTBL) at TTC Zugbrücke Grenzau. This was followed by a stint in Ochsenhausen and he is currently under contract with TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt and is playing an outstanding season, with victories against Patrick Franziska (world ranking: 12), Darko Jorgic (13) and Anders Lind (28), among others, making him the second-best TTBL player with a record of 10:2. His game is attacking and uncompromising.
“Kanak is a player with great prospects,” Borussia manager Andreas Preuß explains the signing. “He will continue to progress internationally and has already shown this year that he can beat the top players. He is an outstanding Bundesliga player and will be a great asset to the team.” And one thing is also important to Preuß: “He's a good fit for us because he's a person who identifies with his club. He will win games and win over our fans.”
Kanak Jha himself is very modest. “I'm just looking forward to playing for Borussia Düsseldorf. I will do my best to live up to expectations,” he says in German.
Source: Press release Borussia Düsseldorf
Featured image above: Andreas Preuß and Kanak Jha (Photo: Borussia Düsseldorf)