Liebherr TTBL Final4: Saarbrücken and Düsseldorf to battle for the German Championship on Sunday

The Table Tennis Bundesliga (TTBL) is ready for the clash of the titans: 1. FC Saarbrücken TT and Borussia Düsseldorf won their semifinals in the Liebherr TTBL Final4 on Saturday and will now face off on Sunday at 1 p.m. (CEST) at the Süwag Energie ARENA in Frankfurt. The German Championship final will be broadcast live on Dyn.

Just one more win separates 1. FC Saarbrücken TT from its first treble and, with it, the most successful season in the club’s history. On Saturday evening, FCS—which has already triumphed in the Cup and the Champions League—defeated SV Werder Bremen 3-1 in the Liebherr TTBL Final4, securing its spot in the grand final. Tomorrow, Sunday, the Saarland team will face Borussia Düsseldorf starting at 1 p.m. (CEST) (live on Dyn), which previously defeated TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt 3-2 at the Süwag Energie ARENA in Frankfurt.

Fan Zhendong was, of course, the center of attention on Saturday. Many fans had traveled all the way from China just to see the Olympic champion in person. On the court, it was a highly anticipated rematch: Last October, Fan had suffered a surprise loss to Bremen’s Marcelo Aguirre (1-3), but this time he largely had the Paraguayan under control and gave Saarbrücken a 3-0 lead. For Fan, this marks a particularly emotional showdown: On Sunday, the superstar will play one last match for FCS before transferring to final opponent Düsseldorf for the upcoming season. After Fan’s opening victory, Kirill Gerassimenko tied the match with a 3-2 win over Patrick Franziska. But the next two singles matches went to Saarbrücken: Darko Jorgic overcame a 0-2 set deficit against Mattias Karlsson and won the following sets 15-13, 11-8, 11-8; Fan Zhendong finally secured a spot in the final with a 3-1 victory over Irvin Bertrand. “Bremen is a very, very strong team—we gave it our all and are very happy that we made it to the final,” said Jorgic.

Around 5,500 fans expected at the Süwag Energie ARENA

This year, the showdown for the German Championship will be held in a Final Four format for the first time. Around 5,500 spectators are expected to attend the Liebherr TTBL Final4 at the Süwag Energie ARENA over the course of the weekend. The entire event will be broadcast live by TTBL media partner Dyn.

“The semifinals have impressively demonstrated why we chose this new format: table tennis at the very highest level featuring four world-class teams,” says Nico Stehle, Managing Director of the organizing Tischtennis Bundesliga GmbH. “With 1. FC Saarbrücken TT and Borussia Düsseldorf, fans can look forward to thrilling competition at the highest level. It will be the highlight of an emotional season.”

Borussia Düsseldorf defeats TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt

Borussia Düsseldorf had to work extremely hard before securing its spot in the Saarbrücken final. As the winner of the main round, the record champion had the privilege of choosing its semifinal opponent, but faced a TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt team in top form. The table tennis thriller between the two teams lasted more than four hours, with the doubles match ultimately deciding the outcome. “It was an incredible match,” said Düsseldorf’s Dang Qiu afterward. “It felt like anything was possible. ‘Bene’ played incredibly well. We were actually already out of it.”

Bergneustadt was on the verge of an upset with a 2-1 lead when Benedikt Duda took a 2-0 set lead over Anton Källberg in the top singles match. But the Swede staged a comeback that few thought possible and saved Düsseldorf with a 3-2 victory, sending the match to doubles. “I’m completely exhausted, both physically and mentally,” Källberg admitted afterward. In the doubles, Dang Qiu and Li Yongyin then secured Borussia’s spot in the final. Källberg had previously won 3-1 against Romain Ruiz. For Bergneustadt, Duda defeated Qiu and de Nodrest defeated Kanak Jha, both by scores of 3-2—temporarily turning the Süwag Energie ARENA into a madhouse. “‘Bene’ is playing the semifinals for his hometown club. That’s where all the passion came from,” Timo Boll remarked into the Dyn microphone after Duda’s victory over Qiu. Despite the elimination, this is the most successful season in Bergneustadt’s club history. In 2019, the team from the Oberberg region had advanced to the TTBL semifinals for the first time.

The Liebherr TTBL Final4 at a glance

Semifinals

Borussia Düsseldorf – TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt 3:2
Anton Källberg – Romain Ruiz 3:1 (10:12, 11:9, 11:7, 11:3)
Dang Qiu – Benedikt Duda 2:3 (12:10, 10:12, 11:9, 9:11, 9:11)
Kanak Jha – Leo de Nodrest 2:3 (11:2, 9:11, 11:9, 8:11, 5:11)
Anton Källberg – Benedikt Duda 3:2 (9:11, 6:11, 11:6, 11:7, 11:8)
Dang Qiu/Li Yongyin – Leo de Nodrest/Adrien Rassenfosse 3:1 (5:11, 11:4, 11:7, 11:6)

1. FC Saarbrücken TT – SV Werder Bremen 3:1
Fan Zhendong – Marcelo Aguirre 3:0 (11:6, 11:8, 11:5)
Patrick Franziska – Kirill Gerassimenko 2:3 (16:14, 7:11, 13:11, 11:13, 5:11)
Darko Jorgic – Mattias Karlsson 3:2 (10:12, 10:12, 15:13, 11:8, 11:8)
Fan Zhendong – Irvin Bertrand 3:1 (11:3, 11:3, 7:11, 11:8)

Final

Sunday, May 31
1:00 p.m. (CEST): Borussia Düsseldorf – 1. FC Saarbrücken TT (live on Dyn)

Header image: 1. FC Saarbrücken TT's Fan Zhendong (by BeLa Sportfoto)