Bundesliga

1.FC Saarbrücken TT has secured its third title of the season, winning the treble for the first time in the club’s history. In his final match for FCS, Fan Zhendong led his club to a 3-1 victory over Borussia Düsseldorf on Sunday, clinching the Table Tennis Bundesliga (TTBL) championship. Around 5,600 fans watched the Liebherr TTBL Final4 over the weekend at the Süwag Energie ARENA in Frankfurt.

With the composure of a superstar, Fan Zhendong reacted to the latest major title of his career. A nod of appreciation to his opponent Kanak Jha, a handshake, then a broad grin, before the 29-year-old was engulfed by his cheering teammates. 1. FC Saarbrücken TT owed its 3-1 triumph in the Liebherr TTBL Final4 final against Borussia Düsseldorf in particular to the Olympic champion.

Two weeks earlier, Fan and the FCS had already won the Champions League, and in January they also claimed the German Table Tennis Cup. For the Saarland-based club, this marks the first treble in the club’s history and their second German championship since 2020. “I’m very happy that I was able to help the team with two wins,” Fan said afterward. “Even when I wasn’t able to perform at my best at times during the season, the team was there to step up. That shows what a strong team we are.”

Fan Zhendong electrifies the FCS one last time

The match at the Liebherr TTBL Final4 was a special one for Fan Zhendong in every way. By winning his first championship in Germany, the Chinese Olympic champion not only fulfilled the “triple mission” for which he was signed last summer. He did so in his final match for Saarbrücken, ironically against his future club—the 29-year-old is set to join Düsseldorf for the new season. In the Liebherr TTBL Final4, he demonstrated why his transfer to FCS nearly a year ago has truly electrified the TTBL. Not only did Fan shine on the court over the weekend with four victories, but he also sent the crowd into a frenzy. Every point scored by the superstar was celebrated frenetically by the majority of the spectators. Loud chants of “Fan Zhendong” during the final points of the match turned the Süwag Energie ARENA into a madhouse.

But let’s start from the beginning: With a 3-1 opening victory over Dang Qiu, Fan Zhendong laid the foundation for the title win. Qiu showed flashes of brilliance and even had a 2-1 set lead within reach at one point. But Fan was ultimately too strong. “Of course we’re disappointed now after losing the final,” the German national team player summed up that evening. “We played a great match. But against a team as strong as Saarbrücken, everything has to go perfectly, and that wasn’t the case today.”

Franziska wins the deciding match against Källberg

Just as important as the fans’ performance was Patrick Franziska’s showing. After Kanak Jha tied the match with a 3-0 victory over Darko Jorgic, the match in the third position became the deciding one. And Franziska delivered: After losing to Bremen’s Kirill Gerassimenko the day before, he put on a strong performance against Anton Källberg and secured the FCS lead once again with a 3-1 victory.

Had Källberg won the match, the final might have gone to the doubles—and there, Düsseldorf would suddenly have been the favorites. After his victory, which put the score at 2-1, Franziska was asked if he was up for the doubles. “Nope,” he replied curtly with a grin. Düsseldorf’s manager, Andreas Preuß, wasn’t ready to give up hope just yet: “Anything can happen in table tennis,” he said into the arena microphone.

“Incredibly proud”: Franziska looks back on ten years in Saarbrücken

Fan Zhendong finally fulfilled Franziska’s wish and clinched the championship: With a 3-2 victory over Jha, the triple was complete. “I’m incredibly proud of the team. We were the favorites in every competition—but it’s incredibly close. We managed to handle that pressure,” said Franziska. “I moved to Saarbrücken ten years ago. If someone had told me back then that we’d eventually win the treble, I wouldn’t have thought it possible.”

Congratulations from the defeated record champions came from Danny Heister. “You’ve earned it,” said the coach, who has won the treble three times with Borussia (2011, 2018, 2021). “I can’t blame my team. We gave it our all; unfortunately, it wasn’t enough this time.”

Düsseldorf fights hard against Bergneustadt

The day before, Düsseldorf had had to work extremely hard. As the winner of the main round, the record champion had been allowed to choose its semifinal opponent, but faced a TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt team in top form. The table tennis thriller between the two teams lasted more than four hours, with the doubles match ultimately deciding the outcome. “It was an incredible match,” said Dang Qiu afterward. “It felt like anything was possible. We were actually already out.” Borussia had Anton Källberg to thank for that: With the score at 1-2 and down 0-2 in sets against Benedikt Duda, Düsseldorf’s elimination seemed imminent, but then the Swede staged a comeback and lifted his team into the doubles. There, Dang Qiu and Li Yongyin secured a spot in the final.

A few hours later, Saarbrücken defeated SV Werder Bremen and also secured a spot in the final. The Saarland team prevailed 3-1 over the second-place finisher from the main round. The match featured a highly anticipated rematch: Last October, Fan Zhendong had suffered a surprise loss to Marcelo Aguirre (1-3), but this time he largely had the Paraguayan under control and put Saarbrücken in the lead. After Kirill Gerassimenko tied the match, things got tight again for FCS, but Darko Jorgic overcame a 0-2 set deficit against Mattias Karlsson and won the next two sets. Fan ultimately secured a spot in the final against Irvin Bertrand. “Bremen is a very, very strong team—we gave it our all and are very happy that we made it to the final,” said Jorgic.

5,600 fans enthusiastically embrace the Liebherr TTBL Final4

For the first time this year, the German champion was determined in a compact Final Four format featuring semifinals and a final all in one weekend. “As a player, I’ve always really enjoyed the Final Four format,” Timo Boll commented on the Dyn microphone. “It’s very, very good for the level of competition, and it’s also a great event. You rarely get to experience something like this.”

The fans also enthusiastically embraced the new format, with around 5,600 fans flocking to the Süwag Energie ARENA over the course of the weekend. Numerous spectators had traveled all the way from China specifically to see Fan Zhendong in person. The Liebherr TTBL Final4 was thus a huge success for the Table Tennis Bundesliga.

“World-class sports in one place”: TTBL sets new records again

“With the Liebherr TTBL Final4, we wanted to bring all the top players together in one place and offer a weekend packed with world-class sports. We succeeded in doing that,” said Nico Stehle, managing director of the organizing Tischtennis Bundesliga GmbH. “We’ve seen that there aren’t just two top teams in the TTBL—after all, the final matchup could have looked very different. With this final event, a record number of spectators over the weekend, a record number of spectators in the arenas throughout the season, a media reach that has grown once again, and increased international appeal, the league can look back on a great season. I would like to thank the clubs and players, all the supporters and partners, and all the volunteers, without whom this development would not have been possible.”

Those who weren’t able to attend the Süwag Energie ARENA in person over the weekend could, of course, still follow the Liebherr TTBL Final4. The entire event was broadcast live on Dyn, where the Liebherr TTBL Final4 remains available on demand as a replay and in various highlight formats. A summary of the event was broadcast on Sunday evening as part of ARD’s main programming, and Hessischer Rundfunk (HR), Saarländischer Rundfunk (SR), and Radio Bremen also covered the event in their news broadcasts on Saturday and Sunday evenings. In addition to the national broadcast, the event was also shown worldwide in various countries, including China, where TTBL matches are regularly broadcast.

The Liebherr TTBL Final4 at a glance

Final

1. FC Saarbrücken TT – Borussia Düsseldorf 3:1
Fan Zhendong – Dang Qiu 3:1 (11:5, 11:13, 12:10, 11:8)
Darko Jorgic – Kanak Jha 0:3 (7:11, 7:11, 7:11)
Patrick Franziska – Anton Källberg 3:1 (11:6, 11:6, 9:11, 11:6)
Fan Zhendong – Kanak Jha 3:2 (6:11, 11:6, 11:8, 9:11, 11:6)

Semifinals

Borussia Düsseldorf – TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt 3:2
Anton Källberg – Romain Ruiz 3:1 (10:12, 11:9, 11:7, 11:3)
Dang Qiu – Benedikt Duda 2:3 (12:10, 10:12, 11:9, 9:11, 9:11)
Kanak Jha – Leo de Nodrest 2:3 (11:2, 9:11, 11:9, 8:11, 5:11)
Anton Källberg – Benedikt Duda 3:2 (9:11, 6:11, 11:6, 11:7, 11:8)
Dang Qiu/Li Yongyin – Leo de Nodrest/Adrien Rassenfosse 3:1 (5:11, 11:4, 11:7, 11:6)

1. FC Saarbrücken TT – SV Werder Bremen 3:1
Fan Zhendong – Marcelo Aguirre 3:0 (11:6, 11:8, 11:5)
Patrick Franziska – Kirill Gerassimenko 2:3 (16:14, 7:11, 13:11, 11:13, 5:11)
Darko Jorgic – Mattias Karlsson 3:2 (10:12, 10:12, 15:13, 11:8, 11:8)
Fan Zhendong – Irvin Bertrand 3:1 (11:3, 11:3, 7:11, 11:8)

Header image: 1. FC Saarbrücken TT's at the title ceremony (by BeLa Sportfoto)