The German men’s table tennis national team conceded a surprising defeat against India at the Team World Championship in China and is now under pressure before the supposedly most difficult group game on Monday against France.
European champion Germany lost 1:3 against the Indians. The two top players Dang Qiu and Benedikt Duda each lost 2:3 against the world number 37 after a 2:0 set lead. Sathiyan Gnanasekaran. “So annoying,” Duda called this defeat. “That was a used day.” The single European champion Dang Qiu got the only point against Harmeet Desai.
Coach Roßkopf dissatisfied
“We definitely missed too many chances,” said national coach Jörg Roßkopf. “We just didn’t perform as well as we should in a game like this. We’ve got to get through it and shake ourselves up because there’s a lot at stake tomorrow against France. I know it won’t get any easier. But I know the players can still improve.”
At this World Cup in Chengdu, only the two best teams in each preliminary round group will definitely qualify for the round of 16. In the women’s group, four third parties still reach the knockout round, but only two in the men’s. The French have easily won their previous games against outsiders Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan. The German team has to compete in this tournament without the three top players Timo Boll, Dimitrij Ovtcharov and Patrick Franziska.
DTTB women on course
The German women, on the other hand, are on course for the round of 16 in Chengdu. Ying Han, Nina Mittelham and Shan Xiaona defeated Egypt 3-0 without losing a set and now play the Czech Republic for group victory on Monday.
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