18-year-old leads Germany to tearful surprise
The German men's table tennis team falls far short of expectations at the Olympics. Quite the opposite for the women: The team advances to the semifinals against India and is now fighting for medals. Despite major injury setbacks and thanks to Annett Kaufmann.
France is in awe and celebrating its prodigy Felix Lebrun. The 17-year-old is shaking up the table tennis world with his aggressive play and seems destined to break the eternal dominance of the Chinese. He is already the best player in the rankings who is not from China. While it's still too early to write a similar hero story for Germany, suddenly there's Annett Kaufmann at the Olympic table who could become a big name. The 18-year-old secures the semifinals for her weakened team with two spectacular wins against the favored Indian women in singles.
Germany is now fighting for a medal. The next match is against Japan on Thursday. The task will be much harder. The next opponent is listed at position two behind, as could be expected, China. But the women have already achieved what was much more expected of the men. They failed against Sweden in the farewell of Timo Boll on Tuesday evening (0:3). The women, however, developed a fighting mentality from the great injury misfortune before and during the tournament, with top players Ying Han and Nina Mittelham falling out, wanting to show the world what they're made of.
And Kaufmann especially used this stage for herself. She is still listed far beyond place 80 in the world rankings. But that won't stay that way for long. Not if she plays like she is currently doing in Paris. With her remarkable courage, her carefree attitude, and her precise attacks, she disarmed her opponents. At times, she played sensational table tennis against India, especially in the last duel against world number 22 Sreeja Akula. The Indian couldn't keep up with the little ball flying around her head at 11:6, 11:6, 11:7. Kaufmann played not only cleverly but also aggressively, going on the offensive again and again, placing the ball close to the edges. This was not a grinding defensive tactic, but a furious attack.
Actually, the match winner was not even planned for the games. Only through the injury of Ying Han, the 41-year-old defensive specialist who injured her Achilles tendon again shortly after her comeback, did she make it into the squad. The same applies to Yuan Wan, who replaced the top player Mittelham, who experienced a big drama in singles. She had to retire with a disc injury. "Especially for Nina, but also for our team, that's very bitter," said DTTB sports director Richard Prause, who can therefore be particularly proud of the performance of the "replacement team."
In a hard-fought doubles match, Yuan Wan and Xiaona Shan (11:5, 8:11, 12:10, 11:6) first secured the first point for Germany against Archana Girish Kamath and Sreeja Akula. Then Kaufmann scored the first exclamation point against Manika Batra (18:11, 11:5, 11:7, 11:5), before the second followed a wild defeat of Xiaona Shan against Kamath. The 18-year-old had already contributed two wins to the shaky victory against the USA in the previous round. She is still undefeated in Paris. And after she had also set her match ball with courage and an aggressive and precise forehand attack, she raised her arms, ran unbelievingly into the arms of her weeping teammates. The big surprise was perfect. For the first time since the 2016 World Championships, the German women have performed better than the German men.
The Olympic Games provide an opportunity for Annett Kaufmann to shine, as she secures a place in the semifinals for the German women's table tennis team. Germany's women's team, currently fighting for a medal, will face a tough challenge against Japan in the next match at the Olympic Games.
