Matchday 2: Saarbrücken and Fulda aim to avoid false start

After the spectacular start to the season in the Table Tennis Bundesliga (TTBL), all eyes are on the second match day, which starts on Friday evening with three games. Among others, 1. FC Saarbrücken TT and TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell would then like to avoid a complete false start after the opening defeats. Two more matches await on Sunday before the match day is concluded on Monday when TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen welcome TSV Bad Königshofen.

TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell - TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt

TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt travels to Eastern Hesse with unpleasant memories in its luggage. Benedikt Duda and Co. lost twice in Fulda in the previous season. Particularly bitter was the 1:3 in the German Table Tennis Cup, by which Bergneustadt missed the hoped-for participation in the Final Four. And even now the guests see TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell in the role of favorites: "I would currently estimate the chances in Fulda at 60:40 for them, but I hope I'm wrong," team manager Heinz Duda told Oberberg Aktuell. However, the impressions of the first match day tend to speak in favor of his team. While Bergneustadt won 3:1 against Mainz, Fulda fell short of expectations in a 0:3 loss against Ochsenhausen. On Friday, the East Hessians can probably count on Alexandre Cassin again, who had suffered a hand injury against the TTF, but reported fit in time.

1.FC Saarbrücken TT - TTC Neu-Ulm

For the 1st FC Saarbrücken TT it was a season start to forget: Last Monday, the reigning runners-up lost 3-1 at Grenzau, last year's eighth-place team, and thus got off to the worst possible start. In the first home match of the new season, Patrick Franziska's team wants to show its better side again and win the first points of the season. The problem is that TTC Neu-Ulm, one of the presumed main rivals in the fight for the title, is coming to Saarland. The Swabians started the season with two of the new top stars in Dimitrij Ovtcharov and Truls Moregard and, as expected, won against Grünwettersbach. Lin Yun-Ju, on the other hand, is still waiting for his debut for Neu-Ulm. The outcome of Friday night's match, which starts at 7 p.m., will depend a lot on which squad the guests field this time.

ASV Grünwettersbach - TTC Zugbrücke Grenzau

Even his own coach was surprised by his team's strong performance at the end: "I was a bit surprised how consistently and above all how calmly they played," said Slobodan Grujic, coach of TTC Zugbrücke Grenzau, after his team's 3:1 surprise win at the start of the season against Saarbrücken. By "the two" he meant Feng Yi-Hsin and Maciej Kubik, who ensured the success with their singles victories. The mood at the six-time German champion is correspondingly exuberant ahead of the showdown with ASV Grünwettersbach - but there will be no arrogance. "It will be a very difficult task," believes TTC manager Markus Ströher. Last season, both matches went to Grünwettersbach (3:1, 3:0), and ASV also finished tenth in the table, one place ahead of Grenzau. Unlike the TTC, however, the Badeners started the season with a defeat: On Sunday, ASV lost 1:3 in Neu-Ulm, but also faced Dimitrij Ovtcharov and Truls Moregard.

1. FSV Mainz 05 - Borussia Düsseldorf

Seven days after the TTBL debut, the next highlight is already on the calendar for 1st FSV Mainz 05. On Sunday, the Rheinhessen team will play its first home match in the TTBL, and all fans can look forward to a top-class guest in Borussia Düsseldorf. The recent run on tickets has been correspondingly great. However, it is not only the record champion that is causing enthusiasm among the Mainzers, but also their own team that is giving cause for celebration. Although the team lost its debut 3-1 in Bergneustadt, Luka Mladenovic beat Omar Assar 3-0 and the debut was convincing overall. "Mainz had a strong start to the season," acknowledged Düsseldorf manager Andreas Preuß, whose team won 3-0 against Mulhouse to open the season. Meanwhile, which Borussia team will serve in Mainz on Sunday is still unclear. Kay Stumper is currently playing at the WTT Feeder in Bulgaria and would not be available if the team reaches the quarterfinals; Timo Boll is plagued by problems with his thigh. "We can only decide on Saturday who will play," said Preuß. "But no matter what lineup we start with, in the end we just have to win. Basta."

SV Werder Bremen - Post SV Mulhouse

Only a few days ago Mattias Falck and Daniel Habesohn met in the final of the doubles competition at the European Championships. In the end Falck (with Kristian Karlsson) won the gold medal ahead of Habesohn (with Robert Gardos). In the TTBL, the Austrian would now like to take revenge if possible and achieve his first win of the season with his Post SV Mühlhausen. At the start of the season, last year's fourth-placed team had to settle for a 0:3 defeat in Düsseldorf. The guests should also be able to count on Ovidiu Ionescu on Sunday: The Romanian, who won the European Championship silver medal in mixed, lives and trains in Bremen and therefore always looks forward to the duels with Werder. Last season, Ionescu played a decisive role in his team's two victories (3:0, 3:2) with two wins in singles and one in doubles. Bremen, however, is entering the tournament with a tailwind: The team won 3:2 in Bad Königshofen at the start of the season.

TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen - TSV Bad Königshofen

The "perfect start of the season" and a "great team performance" was what Kristijan Pejinovic, president of TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen, saw at the start of the new season. The Upper Swabians won 3-0 against Fulda and thus took revenge for the defeats suffered in the previous season, which had ultimately even led to missing out on the play-offs. "That was a great start to the new round," Kanak Jha also said, but did not forget to mention: "The season is still long, and we remain focused." With TSV Bad Königshofen, the next contender for the play-offs will be played on Monday evening. The Lower Franconians have already suffered the first setback in the past week, with the 2:3 against Bremen failed the start into the new season. In the previous year both duels went to the TTF: In the first leg Samuel Kulczycki with victories in singles and doubles became the match winner, in the second leg Can Akkuzu shone with two singles victories.

The 2nd matchday in overview

Friday, September 2, 6.30 p.m.
TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell – TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt

Friday, September 2, 7 p.m.
1. FC Saarbrücken TT – TTC Neu-Ulm

Friday, September 2, 7.30 p.m.
ASV Grünwettersbach – TTC Zugbrücke Grenzau

Sunday, September 4, 1 p.m.
1. FSV Mainz 05 – Borussia Düsseldorf

Sunday, September 4, 4 p.m.
SV Werder Bremen – Post SV Mühlhausen

Monday, September 5, 7 p.m.
TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen – TSV Bad Königshofen

You can see all the games live on Spontent's channels on Twitch.