German table tennis players finished their campaign at the World Table Tennis (WTT) Star Contender in São José dos Campos, Brazil, with two singles quarterfinal appearances and one bronze medal in the doubles competition. Nina Mittelham and Patrick Franziska both advanced to the final eight of the $300,000 tournament before exiting on Saturday, July 26.
Mittelham and Franziska Reach Quarterfinals in Brazil
In the quarterfinals, Mittelham faced top-seeded Japanese player Hina Hayata. After dropping the opening game and narrowly losing the second, Mittelham claimed the third set 13–11 before bowing out in the fourth, resulting in a 1–3 defeat (-4, -9, 11, -2).
Patrick Franziska reached the quarterfinals by defeating France’s Thibault Poret 3–1 (-8, 10, 7, 9). In the next round, Franziska encountered European Champion Alexis Lebrun of France.
Duda Falls Just Short in Five-Set Thriller
Benedikt Duda missed out on a quarterfinal spot following a narrow defeat against South Korea’s Oh Junsung. Duda squandered four set points in a lengthy opening frame, dropping it 15–17. The German player rallied to force a deciding fifth set and built a 7–3 lead, but Oh staged a comeback to take the final set 11–8, securing a 3–2 victory overall.
Bertelsmeier and Verdonschot Claim Bronze in Doubles
The sole German medals at the São José dos Campos event came on Friday, July 25, when U21 European Champions Andre Bertelsmeier and Wim Verdonschot captured the bronze medal in the men’s doubles draw. It marks the first time the pairing has medaled together at a WTT Star Contender level event.
Fanbo Meng Competes at WTT Feeder Tashkent
While the tournament in Brazil concluded on Saturday, German competition continues concurrently at the WTT Feeder in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Fanbo Meng represents the sole German entry in the main draw, facing France’s Estebann Dorr in the round of 32 on Sunday, July 27.
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