Dhe 1. FC Saarbrücken won the title in the table tennis premier class for the first time in their second Champions League final late Monday evening in Düsseldorf. In a dramatic final after 4:35 hours, the Saarlanders defeated the six-time title holder Borussia Düsseldorf.
The decision was only made in the so-called golden match, which was used for the first time ever in a Champions League final, shortly before midnight with a 2-1 set win. The extra time premiere had become necessary because Saarbrücken had previously won the second leg in Düsseldorf 3:2 and had equalized (5:5) after the first leg defeat (2:3).
Källberg der Schwachpunkt
Darko Jorgic scored the crucial second point, narrowly defeating the young talent from Düsseldorf Kay Stumper in the deciding set 11:9. Saarbrücken’s top player Patrick Franziska had previously won all three games, including two five-set wins against European champions Dang Qiu and Anton Källberg.
In the repeated absence of record European champion Timo Boll, who was unable to play in both finals due to persistent back problems, the Swede was the weak point in the Düsseldorf team, because he lost all five finals.
The seventh title win for the Düsseldorf team was already within reach when Stumper had given his team a 2-1 lead in front of more than 1100 spectators in the sold-out ARAG CenterCourt. Franziska and Jorgic, the two top players from Saarland, turned the game around and, with two victories, ensured overtime for the first time.