Final complete: Düsseldorf and Saarbrücken battle for the trophy
The Liebherr Cup Final Four is in full swing: In the sold-out ratiopharm arena Ulm/Neu-Ulm, Borussia Düsseldorf and 1. FC Saarbrücken TT have secured their tickets to the final and will battle for the first title of the season on Sunday afternoon. The entire event will be broadcast live on Dyn.
The approximately 5,000 spectators in the ratiopharm arena were treated to top-class table tennis in two exciting semi-finals and can now look forward to the big showdown. After a short changeover break, Borussia Düsseldorf and 1. FC Saarbrücken TT will battle it out for the German Table Tennis Cup from around 2.45 pm. After the semi-finals, the final of the Liebherr Cup Final Four can also be seen live and exclusively on Dyn.
Borussia Düsseldorf secured the first ticket to the final, but had to give their all to beat ASV Grünwettersbach 3:1. It was not only Tiago Apolonia's 3:0 (11:8, 11:9, 11:9) win over Dang Qiu that made the record champions sweat profusely, but Borussia also had their work cut out for them in the other matches. Anton Källberg prevented a 1:2 set deficit against Deni Kozul in the opening singles match by fending off four set points in a row and fought his way to a 3:1 (11:3, 5:11, 12:10, 12:10). Timo Boll fared similarly on court three, the superstar thwarted five set points in set one against Ricardo Walther and took a 3:0 (17:15, 11:5, 11:4) to give Borussia a 2:1 lead. Källberg made the final perfect by defeating Apolonia 3:2 (11:9, 9:11, 11:4, 7:11, 11:5).
Patrick Franziska with strong nerves in singles and doubles
Things were still going on at the neighbouring table at this point. TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen and 1. FC Saarbrücken TT played out a three-hour thriller, which Saarbrücken finally won 3:2 in the doubles. Patrick Franziska played a decisive role in this. In a thrilling singles match against Simon Gauzy, the 31-year-old initially squandered a 2:0 lead, but came back in the deciding set. With the 3:2 (11:8, 11:7, 10:12, 5:11, 11:8), Franziska gave the FCS a 2:1 lead. Darko Jorgic had won the opening singles match 3:2 (10:12, 11:4, 11:8, 6:11, 11:8) against Hugo Calderano, after which Ochsenhausen also managed to break through thanks to Alvaro Robles' 3:1 (10:12, 11:8, 11:9, 11:7) against Yuto Muramatsu. After Calderano's 3:0 (11:7, 11:2, 11:4) against substitute Cedric Meissner, the match went into the doubles, in which Saarbrücken dominated again. The two-time cup winners finally secured their place in the final thanks to the 3:1 (11:3, 8:11, 11:5, 11:7) win by Meissner/Franziska against Robles/Gauzy.
"Of course we're disappointed and sad, we would have loved to have made it to the final," said Ochsenhausen's Robles on the microphone in the hall afterwards and sent a lot of praise to the crowd: "The atmosphere last year was already incredible and one of the best in my career. But this year it was even better. It was so much fun to play here. Thanks to the audience for their support."
Overview of the Liebherr Cup Final Four
Final, live by Dyn
1. FC Saarbrücken TT – Borussia Düsseldorf
Semi-finale
Borussia Düsseldorf – ASV Grünwettersbach 3:1
Anton Källberg – Deni Kozul 3:1 (11:3, 5:11, 12:10, 12:10)
Dang Qiu – Tiago Apolonia 0:3 (8:11, 9:11, 9:11)
Timo Boll – Ricardo Walther 3:0 (17:15, 11:5, 11:4)
Anton Källberg – Tiago Apolonia 3:2 (11:9, 9:11, 11:4, 7:11, 11:5)
TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen – 1. FC Saarbrücken TT 2:3
Hugo Calderano – Darko Jorgic 2:3 (12:10, 4:11, 8:11, 11:6, 8:11)
Alvaro Robles – Yuto Muramatsu 3:1 (10:12, 11:8, 11:9, 11:7)
Simon Gauzy – Patrick Franziska 2:3 (8:11, 7:11, 12:10, 11:5, 8:11)
Hugo Calderano – Cedric Meissner 3:0 (11:7, 11:2, 11:4)
Alvaro Robles/Simon Gauzy – Cedric Meissner/Patrick Franziska 1:3 (3:11, 11:8, 5:11, 7:11)
Featured image above: Darko Jorgic from 1. FC Saarbrücken TT (Photo: BeLa Sportfoto)