Record champion Timo Boll and Dimitrij Ovtcharov rely on the support of the spectators at the European Table Tennis Championships in Munich.
“Here in Germany we always have a very good atmosphere with great fans behind us,” said Ovtcharov. Also the world number 14. Boll sees this as an advantage. “If you offer him the right performance, it will be well rewarded. That’s where we want to get the spectators into euphoria and hopefully we Germans will go far.”
On Wednesday Boll and Co. will start the tournament in the Rudi-Sedlmayer-Halle. In addition to the world number 9. With Patrick Franziska (12th) and promoted Dang Qiu (13th), Ovtcharov and Boll are four Germans among the top 15 in the world. Boll and Ovtcharov shared seven of the last eight individual European titles.
But both top professionals go into the tournament with a question mark. Boll was recently struggling with a rib injury. “The sessions were decent and painless,” said the Borussia Düsseldorf professional. “I’m not where I want to be in terms of form yet, but I hope I can improve somehow as the tournament progresses.”
Ovtcharov is also handicapped. The Olympic bronze medalist was out for around eight months after two ankle operations. “At the moment everything is possible: between getting to the top and getting eliminated early. I try not to put too much pressure on my results, but concentrate on my game and show my best table tennis,” said the 33-year-old.