Bundesliga

TTC OE Clarity Telefonie-Systeme Bad Homburg defeated another top team on Matchday 21 of the Table Tennis Bundesliga (TTBL): On Tuesday, the Hessian side celebrated a 3-1 victory over TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen. Post SV Mühlhausen secured a 3-0 victory over TSV Bad Königshofen in their final home game of the season.

Defeating the top teams in the Table Tennis Bundesliga (TTBL) remains a specialty of TTC OE Clarity Telefonie-Systeme Bad Homburg. Just under three weeks after their sensational 3-2 victory over 1. FC Saarbrücken TT, the Taunus team has also defeated the reigning German champions: On Tuesday, the 21st and penultimate matchday of the regular season, Bad Homburg celebrated a 3-1 win against TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen.

With 16:26 points, Bad Homburg remains in tenth place in the standings. Ochsenhausen remains in fifth place with 20:22 points. A spot in the top four and the resulting qualification for the Liebherr TTBL Final4 were already out of reach for TTF before the match day.

Final appearance in Bad Homburg: Yokotani defeats Chirita

Jo Yokotani was the key player for Bad Homburg in his final home match for the TTC. The Japanese player secured the decisive 3-2 victory over Iulian Chirita: He turned a hard-fought match around in the fifth set after trailing 1-2, remained unstoppable even after a timeout with a 5-2 lead, and ultimately won the match 11-4. Earlier, Yokotani had already won the opening singles match against Leonardo Iizuka 3-0. Csaba Andras also secured a 3-1 victory for the hosts against Andreas Levenko. For Ochsenhausen, Chirita scored with a 3-0 win over Ivor Ban.

“It was an incredible time,” said Yokotani, who will return to Japan for the upcoming season. “We played in the Final Four of the German Cup and celebrated many victories together. I’m going to miss the team very much.”

Post SV Mühlhausen defends eighth place

Post SV Mühlhausen celebrated a commanding victory in its final home game of the season. With a 3-0 win over TSV Bad Königshofen, the Thuringian side defended its eighth-place standing and now has 18 points. “To win by this margin—that’s just fantastic. It’s just awesome,” Mühlhausen coach Erik Schreyer remarked into the Dyn microphone. Referring to the last-minute absence of Ovidiu Ionescu, he added: “A 3-0 win under these circumstances was certainly a wish, but it wasn’t really realistic.”

Daniel Habesohn did not have a successful reunion with his former club. The Austrian had played for Post SV for nine years before moving to Bad Königshofen last summer. In his first appearance at Kristanplatz in a TSV jersey, Habesohn lost 0-3 on Tuesday to Liao Cheng-Ting, who was called in at the last minute to replace Ionescu. Earlier, Kay Stumper had won 3-1 for Mühlhausen against Filip Zeljko; after the break, Steffen Mengel secured a 3-0 victory over Andre Bertelsmeier.

"Things just weren’t going right" for Bad Königshofen

Although Bad Königshofen remains in eleventh place in the standings following its 15th loss in 21 games this season, the team has secured its place in the league thanks to TSV Windsbach’s decision not to pursue promotion. “Things just weren’t going right from the very start,” said Habesohn, reflecting on the Lower Franconian team’s season. “Overall, not much came together. Our performance wasn’t good. In the last game and especially next season, we need to hit the reset button and do better.”

Matchday 21 of the Table Tennis Bundesliga continues tomorrow, Wednesday, April 15, with two matches. First, Borussia Düsseldorf hosts TTC Zugbrücke Grenzau at 6:30 p.m., followed by the top match between 1. FC Saarbrücken TT and SV Werder Bremen at 7 p.m. These matches and all other TTBL games will be broadcast live on Dyn.

Match day #21 at a glance

Post SV Mühlhausen – TSV Bad Königshofen 3:0
Kay Stumper – Filip Zeljko 3:1 (11:8, 9:11, 13:11, 11:9)
Liao Cheng-Ting – Daniel Habesohn 3:0 (11:7, 11:6, 11:9)
Steffen Mengel – Andre Bertelsmeier 3:0 (11:7, 11:5, 11:8)

TTC OE Clarity Telefonie-Systeme Bad Homburg – TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen 3:1
Jo Yokotani – Leonardo Iizuka 3:0 (11:9, 11:3, 11:7)
Ivor Ban – Iulian Chirita 0:3 (11:13, 8:11, 6:11)
Csaba Andras – Andreas Levenko 3:1 (11:6, 11:8, 9:11, 11:4)
Jo Yokotani – Iulian Chirita 3:2 (5:11, 11:6, 11:7, 8:11, 11:4)

Wednesday, April 15
6:30 p.m.: Borussia Düsseldorf – TTC Zugbrücke Grenzau
7:00 p.m.: 1. FC Saarbrücken TT – SV Werder Bremen

Thursday, April 16
6:30 p.m.: TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell – Borussia Dortmund
7:00 p.m.: ASC Grünwettersbach – TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt

All matches will be broadcast live on Dyn.

Header photo: TTC OE Bad Homburg's Jo Yokotani (by Ulrich Höfer)