The Swiss city Montreux welcomed the best European players, who fought for the title of the continent’s best player. This edition of Europe Top 16 featured almost all the highest-ranked European players. The main exceptions were the experienced German player Dimitrij Ovtcharov, Sweden’s Mattias Falck, and the English table tennis star Liam Pitchford.
The new leader of the Slovenian table tennis Darko Jorgic enjoyed a great time in Switzerland, winning the Europe Top 16 title in a very dramatic fashion. His path to the final was not that complex, since he got comfortable wins against Jonathan Groth (4-0), Daniel Habesohn (4-2), and the German Patrick Franziska (4-1). In the final, he had to face the rising Swedish star Truls Moregardh.
The biggest challenge for Moregardh on his way to the final was his compatriot Kristian Karlsson in the 1/4 finals. Moregardh had the lead for most of the game, but Karlsson managed to make a comeback every time up until the seventh set. Eventually, the youngest of two Swedes took the win, winning the decider 11-8.
The final match-up turned out to be very intense, emotional, and dramatic. For both players, it was a chance to win their first title in this tournament. Jorgic was the finalist in 2020, but he lost to the German legend Timo Boll back then. This time, the Slovenian had to make a comeback, since Moregardh had a comfortable 3-1 lead at one point. Still, the comeback was a hard-fought, and Jorgic won the decisive two sets 12-10.
After reaching the final of this tournament, both – Jorgic and Moregardh reached their career highs in the World Ranking, being placed 12th and 14th in the March rankings.
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