Play-off candidate: Post SV Mühlhausen beats Bergneustadt
Post SV Mühlhausen defeated TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt 3-0 on Matchday 20 in the German Table Tennis League (TTBL). With this, the Thuringians made a big step to enter the play-offs for the second time in a row.
It could have been the season finale worst when Post SV Mühlhausen and TSV Bad Königshofen faced each other on the last matchday of the Tischtennis Bundesliga (TTBL). Until the 20th matchday, they were the most promising candidates for the fourth play-off place. But this final will no longer happen. Bad Königshofen lost clearly in Saarbrücken with 0:3 and Mühlhausen knew how to use this chance.
Ovidiu Ionescu put his team on the road to victory against the team in last place in the table. With a convincing performance he defeated Benedikt Duda. Especially in the first set, Duda overslept and was quickly trailing 3:9. The next two sets were more even, but in the end it was the Romanian who clearly had the upper hand with 3:0.
Alberto Mino still winless
Daniel Habesohn extended the lead with a 3:1 win against Omar Assar. Assar could equalize Habesohn's first set lead, but he could not turn the match around. With 8:11 and 4:11 he lost clearly. After the break, it was up to Irvin Bertrand to set the final point against the still winless Alberto Mino. But Mino defended himself bravely, twice overcoming a set deficit. In the fifth set, however, he ran out of steam. Bertrand pulled away to 0:6, before Mino scored three points in a row. The following time out of the young Frenchman showed its effect. The left-hander scored the next five points.
With the win, Mühlhausen's lead over Bad Königshofen is four points with two match days left. Due to the significantly better game ratio (44:35) compared to Bad Königshofen (41:46), the team from Lower Franconia is out of the race for the play-off places. Mathematically, there is only one more competitor for the Thuringians: ASV Grünwettersbach. The 21st matchday continues on Tuesday. Bergneustadt then receives Bad Königshofen. For Mühlhausen, it continues a week later on Tuesday at home against Ochsenhausen.
The 20th matchday in the overview
TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt – Post SV Mühlhausen 0:3
Benedikt Duda – Ovidiu Ionescu 0:3 (6:11, 9:11, 14:16)
Omar Assar – Daniel Habesohn 1:3 (10:12, 11:5, 8:11, 4:11)
Alberto Mino – Irvin Bertrand 2:3 (8:11, 11:7, 8:11, 11:5, 3:11)
TSV Bad Königshofen – 1. FC Saarbrücken TT 0:3
Bastian Steger – Takuya Jin 0:3 (8:11, 9:11, 4:11)
Filip Zeljko – Patrick Franziska 2:3 (15:13, 9:11, 8:11, 11:9, 9:11)
Kilian Ort – Darko Jorgic 0:3 (4:11, 7:11, 7:11)
Sunday, March 19
6.30 p.m.: TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell – ASV Grünwetterbach
3 p.m.: TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen – SV Werder Bremen
4 p.m.: TTC Zugbrücke Grenzau – 1. FSV Mainz 05
4.30 p.m.: Borussia Düsseldorf – TTC Neu-Ulm
You can see all the games live on Spontent's channels on Twitch.