Star paddler Sathiyan's club ASV Grunwettersbach lifts the German Cup title

The Indian star paddler G. Sathiyan served himself and his club, ASV Grunwettersbasch a delight as his team won the German Cup (Bundesliga) table tennis championships. ASV outsmarted the defending champion TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen 3-2, who normally known for putting up its best, looked off-colour during the final game on Saturday. Having lost both his singles matches, Sathiyan played some exhilarating shots in the opening match which brooked no challenge from Shang Kun in five games (11-8, 7-11, 11-9, 6-11, 11-9).

Sathiyan was quoted as saying, "It was a great team effort. We were the underdogs and [the win] was certainly a big surprise for those assembled in the hall (Ratiopharm Hall) that had 4,600 people in attendance. It was great to play such a high level of match. I simply loved the atmosphere."

After a long time, there was a final that not only went down to the wire but had several edge-of-the-seat moments. TTF had its share of chances, but soon Sathiyan’s ASV turned on the heat on its rival never to look back. This is the first time that ASV has won the German Cup. Currently ranked 30th in the world, Sathiyan believes the win is essential for him, especially at a time with the Olympic Team qualification tournament fast approaching. "I hope to take my good form to the qualifiers, and hope to perform even better,” he said. The Olympic Qualification tournament is scheduled to be held in Gondomar, Portugal over a period of four days starting from January 22.

In November last year, he became the lone Indian to compete at the ITTF World Cup. Having begun his campaign in style, Sathiyan could not advance to the quarter-finals. Although he did not get us any medals, his qualification alone will forever hold its place among the most inspiring moments in Indian sports. The highlight of his career came last August when he signed up with German Bundesliga’s top division club ASV Grunwettersbach Tischtennis, also hailed as the most prestigious league in the world. He became only the second Indian to sign up with a club in Germany, after India’s Sharath Kamal.

The experience that he garnered contributed to a stellar 2019. After coming sixth in the Asian Cup, he broke into the top 25 to be ranked 24th – the first-ever Indian to break into the top 25 in the world rankings. He was awarded yet another top honour in September when ITTF hailed Sathiyan as the biggest star of the Asian Table Tennis Championships that were held in Indonesia.