Second-division side Velbert reaches German Cup quarterfinals
SV Union Velbert has booked its place in the quarterfinals of the German Table Tennis Cup. In the all-second-division clash with 1. FSV Mainz 05, the team from North Rhine-Westphalia came out on top with a 3–1 victory. The standout performer was Wim Verdonschot, who won both of his singles matches – including the decisive duel against Albert Vilardell, which he secured in five hard-fought sets.
Velbert laid the foundation with Verdonschot’s clear 3–0 win over Nathan Lam and a gritty five-set victory from Timotius Köchling against Chia-Hung Sun. Mainz struck back through Daniel Berzosa, who edged Anton Limonov in another five-set battle, but Verdonschot struck again. In the third set against Vilardell, he overturned a 4–8 deficit to take it 11–8 and ultimately sealed the tie with another win in the fifth set.
Final Four dreams for a second-division club?
Mainz now finds itself on the brink of a small sensation. One more victory would see the club qualify for the Final Four, which is expected to be staged in January 2026. It was already Mainz’s second official win of the campaign, following their 6–3 triumph over Hilpoltstein in the 2. Bundesliga. On Sunday they face 1. FC Köln, while Velbert will open its own league season against Jülich.
Jülich, however, had suffered defeat in the Cup earlier in the week against Grenzau – the Westerwald side advanced to the quarterfinals along with Bad Homburg. With Velbert now joining them, three teams have already secured their places in the last eight, with the remaining fixtures to be played next week.
Fixtures
SV Union Velbert – 1. FSV Mainz 05 3:1
Wim Verdonschot – Nathan Lam 3:0 (11:4, 11:8, 11:6)
Timotius Köchling – Chia-Hung Sun 3:2 (11:4, 10:12, 7:11, 11:8, 11:6)
Anton Limonov – Daniel Berzosa 2:3 (6:11, 8:11, 11:7, 14:12, 7:11)
Wim Verdonschot – Albert Vilardell 3:2 (11:13, 11:4, 11:8, 7:11, 11:6)
1. FC Saarbrücken TT II – TTC OE Clarity Telefonie-Systeme Bad Homburg 1:3
Yuto Muramatsu – Benno Oehme 3:0 (11:9, 11:4, 11:4)
Eduard Ionescu – Csaba Andras 2:3 (11:7, 11:6, 7:11, 4:11, 6:11)
Dennis Klein – Ivor Ban 1:3 (9:11, 9:11, 11:8, 9:11)
Yuto Muramatsu – Csaba Andras 2:3 (10:12, 11:3, 6:11, 14:12, 9:11)
TTC indeland Jülich – TTC Zugbrücke Grenzau 0:3
Laurens Devos – Luka Mladenovic 0:3 (9:11, 10:12, 7:11)
Robin Devos – Feng Yi-Hsin 1:3 (7:11, 15:13, 5:11, 3:11)
Kas van Oost – Samuel Walker 0:3 (3:11, 5:11, 5:11)
Freitag, 19. September
19 Uhr: 1. FC Saarbrücken TT – Borussia Dortmund
19.30 Uhr: TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell – ASC Grünwettersbach
Samstag, 20. September
16 Uhr: TSV Bad Königshofen – Borussia Düsseldorf
Sonntag, 21. September
13 Uhr: TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen – SV Werder Bremen
15 Uhr: Post SV Mühlhausen – TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt
Photo credit: Wim Verdonschot of SV Union Velbert (SV Union Velbert)