Bundesliga

After more than three hours, four singles and a deciding doubles, Borussia Düsseldorf opened the new year with a 3–2 victory at TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt on TTBL Matchday 12, consolidating their play-off position. Bergneustadt led 2–0 but let the match slip after the interval and in the doubles—shaped by WTT-driven line-ups and the absence of Adrien Rassenfosse.

The year’s first marquee duel delivered high drama—and was equally defined by the WTT calendar and Rassenfosse’s absence, as Benedikt Duda noted on Dyn. “Düsseldorf had a lot of luck. If Adrian is fit, we win the doubles,” said Duda, pointing to the visitors’ pairing: “Li was really under pressure, just hanging on. Dang won the doubles.” Dang Qiu and Li Yongyin prevailed in four tight games against the left-handed duo Duda/de Nodrest.

That doubles win capped Düsseldorf’s comeback after Bergneustadt had raced to a 2–0 lead—helped by Duda and Qiu not being fielded at No. 1 after travel fatigue from the WTT event in Qatar. “That was the plan because I only got back late from Qatar yesterday. It actually worked—we were 2–0 up. Then we have to take one of the next two singles,” said Duda, who had beaten Anton Källberg in straight games. Romain Ruiz had opened with a 3–2 win over Li.

Bergneustadt’s gap grows

After the break, Qiu swept de Nodrest (3–0) and Källberg beat Ruiz in four. Qiu also addressed the travel grind: “The travel strain is the same for all of us. That’s everyday life, but it’s a pity when you’re essentially flying halfway around the world the day before a league match.” Qiu and Duda only arrived back on Saturday evening; Qiu even squeezed in a short training session that night, as he told Dyn.

The result lifts the record champions to second behind leaders SV Werder Bremen and further stabilises their play-off position. Bergneustadt, meanwhile, face a chase in the second half: if rivals TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen win their game, the gap to the play-off places could widen to four points.

Matchday 12 at a glance

ASC Grünwettersbach – Post SV Mühlhausen 1:3
Tiago Apolonia – Ovidiu Ionescu 3:2 (12:10, 8:11, 13:11, 6:11, 11:7)
Tom Jarvis – Steffen Mengel 1:3 (11:13, 11:6, 10:12, 8:11)
Hiroto Shinozuka – Marcos Freitas (9:11, 11:9, 10:12, 8:11)
Tobias Hippler – Steffen Mengel 1:3 (8:11, 11:9, 3:11, 6:11)

TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt – Borussia Düsseldorf 2:3
Romain Ruiz – Li Yongyin 3:2 (5:11, 11:6, 7:11, 12:10, 11:4)
Benedikt Duda – Anton Källberg 3:0 (11:7, 14:12, 12:10)
Leo de Nodrest – Dang Qiu 0:3 (9:11, 9:11, 4:11)
Romain Ruiz – Anton Källberg 1:3 (11:6, 0:11, 5:11, 1:11)
Duda/de Nodrest – Qiu/Li 1:3 (11:5, 6:11, 9:11, 12:14)

Sunday, 11 January
17:00: TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell – TTC OE Clarity-Telefonie Systeme Bad Homburg

Monday, 12 January
19:00: Borussia Dortmund – 1. FC Saarbrücken TT

Tuesday, 13 January
19:00: SV Werder Bremen – TSV Bad Königshofen

Wednesday, 14 January
19:00: TTC Zugbrücke Grenzau – TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen

All matches live on Dyn.

Picture: Li Yongyin of Borussia Düsseldorf (Photo: Borussia Düsseldorf)