Patrick Franziska (Photo WTT)
Saturday night was one huge German party at WTT Champions Frankfurt, with Patrick Franziska beating the World No.1 Sora Matsushima 9-11, 13-11, 11-8, 11-7, 10-12, 12-10 to make it to the final day of a WTT Champions event for the second week in a row.
One week after Franziska was left heartbroken after dropping a 3-1 lead in the final of WTT Champions Montpellier 2026 to Jang Woojin, the former World No.8 dusted himself off to reach the semifinals in his home event.
Signs Franziska could do something special were evident in the first, when he went up 6-1 but somehow lost the opener. He was then just two points away from going 2-0 down but saved game point to level. Franziska had arrived.
With one game under his belt, the ‘Gentle Giant’ started to grow into the match, giving the best player in the world a run for his money, and scored some stunning points, including one that he whipped around the net, as he drank in the cheers from the crowd and went 3-1 up.
Leading 0-4 and 7-10 in the fifth, it looked like the Matsushima comeback was starting to gain momentum, but in a stunning turn of events, Franziska saved three Game Points, and at 10-10, the Japanese corner called a time out.
Matsushima had to win this game in deuce; there was no other alternative. And he did, confirming this David versus Goliath clash would have one more chapter.
Game six was phenomenal, with several huge rallies going the way of both players, and Süwag Energie Arena was buzzing as Franziska continued to trade blows with Matsushima, and we were level at 9-9 as this epic entered its final stages.
The first opportunity to end the game went to Franziska, and if he could take it, he would blow the roof off Infinity ∞ Arena, but Matsushima saved. Franziska then got one more bit at the cherry, and this time, he didn’t let it slip and, after flooring Matsushima, the 34-year-old collapsed to the floor himself.
In another men’s singles quarterfinal Shunsuke Togami put an end to Wim Verdonschot’s fairytale run winning11-5, 5-11, 11-9, 11-6, 7-11, 11-7.
Verdonschot came to Frankfurt as a Wildcard and got his first WTT Champions win on his debut against Simon Gauzy, before stunning Hugo Calderano in the Round of 16.
For Togami, the Japanese World No.16 had previously only made the quarterfinals at this level in 16 attempts.
Harimoto siblings blaze into the semi-finals
Miwa Harimoto put in her strongest performance of the week to beat Chen Xingtong 12-10, 11-5, 6-11, 13-11, 11-13, 11-7 setting up a women’s singles semifinal against compatriot Hina Hayata.
Xingtong , who lost to Harimoto in the final of WTT Champions Yokohama and therefore failed to defend the title she won the year before, was looking to make her 10th semifinal at this level, and potentially her seventh final. Standing in her way, however, was Harimoto, a player she had failed to beat in three of the four matches they played this year.
The 29-year-old Xingtong saved three game points in the first but could not capitalise, and was comprehensively beaten in the second as the Japanese teenager started to close in on the win and Xingtong’s dreams of a second WTT Champions title started to slip away.
But Xingtong was much better in the third, implementing a slow spin game to dominate the late stages of the game, a run she kept going in the fourth, racing to a 0-4 lead. The 18-year-old Harimoto adapted beautifully, and in the deuce game, called a time out when leading 12-11 and returned to the table with everything she needed to extend her lead to 3-1.
Another huge moment came in game five, when Xingtong saved two match points to survive. The Chinese World No. 7 then fought back to 7-7 after trailing 7-4, but the cool, calm, and composed teenager held her nerve to hit four in a row and seal the win.
Stepping into Infinity ∞ Arena after that match was Harimoto’s brother, Tomokazu Harimoto, who beat Dang Qiu 11-6, 15-13, 11-6, 11-5.
The first women’s singles quarterfinal of the day saw Hayata beat Kuai Man 11-13, 11-7, 6-11, 11-7, 11-3, 13-15, 11-7 in what was their eighth meeting in 13 months, and only the second win for the Japanese star.
Hayata blew a 7-4 lead and dropped game point in the opener before levelling the second. The World No. 6 then recovered from going 2-1, but a wild game six finish saw Kuai Man drop four game points and save match point before forcing a decider.
Game seven, however, was only ever going one way, as Hayata regained control and set up four match points to book her spot in the semifinals as she looks to retain her WTT Champions Frankfurt crown.
Things were much more straightforward for No.5 seed Lin Yun-Ju as he brushed aside Wen Ruibo 12-10, 11-7, 11-8, 11-5 and took another step towards his second WTT Champions title of the year.
Sabine Winter also pulled off one of the most comprehensive victories of her career before that match, beating No.8 seed Chen Yi in straight games 11-3, 12-10, 11-7, 11-8 to advance to Sunday’s semifinals.
Winter’s form has been patchy this season. After breaking into the Top 10 and rising to career-high World No.8 in July, she exited United States Smash in the first round and had not gone past the Round of 16 in her other WTT Series events.
But that is well and truly behind her now as Winter dismantled Chen Yo in the first game, storming to a 9-1 lead, and then going 3-0 up in the second as she looked to pull off a statement win against the World No.8.
Chen Yi started to grow into the match in the second, playing counter shots to the opposite side the ball came from, overturning an 8-6 deficit to set up two game points. However, Winter had another weapon in her arsenal and, using her anti-spin rubber, she expertly saved both, then ramped up the pressure when she took game two.
Trailing 2-1 in the third, Chen Yi called a surprising early Time Out, but the match continued to be one-way traffic, as Winter started going through the gears, turning an 8-3 lead into five game points, taking it on the third attempt.
Winter was one game away from a huge win and eliminating China’s last hope of winning WTT Champions Frankfurt , and the German showed no signs of slowing down, building a 7-2 lead.
With nothing to lose, Chen finally started causing Winter some problems, bringing it back to within one point at 7-6, and forcing her to use a Time Out. Back at the table, Winter outfoxed Chen by inviting her to hit with spin, only to spring the anti-spin and set up three Match Points.
One more roll of the dice saw Chen Yi save one, but just seconds later, Winter was punching the air in celebration, having just eliminated the Asian champion.
Satsuki Odo is also through to the quarterfinals after beating Hana Goda 10-12, 11-8, 9-11, 11-9, 11-7, 11-7, 11-7.
QUARTER-FINAL RESULTS
Men’s singles:
Lim Yun-ju (Tpe) bt Wen Ruibo (Chn) 12-10, 11-7, 11-8, 11-5
Shunsuke Togami (Jpn) bt Wim Verdonschot (Ger) 11-9, 5-11, 11-9, 11-6, 7-11, 11-7
Tomokazu Harimoto (Jpn) bt Dang Qiu (Ger) 11-8, 15-13, 11-6, 11-5
Patrick Franziska (Ger) bt Sora Matsushima (Jpn) 9-11, 13-11, 11-8, 11-7, 10-12, 12-10
Women singles:
Hina Hayata (Jpn) bt Kuai Man (Chn) 11-13, 11-7, 8-11, 11-7, 11-3, 13-15, 11-7
Satsuki Odo (Jpn) bt Hana Goda (Egy) 10-12, 11-8, 9-11, 11-9, 11-7, 11-7
Miwa Harimoto (Jpn) bt Chen Xingtong (Chn) 12-10, 11-5, 6-11, 13-11, 11-13, 11-7
Sabine Winter (Ger) bt Chen Yi (Chn) 11-3, 12-10, 11-7, 11-8
