Table tennis. The Blues struggled against the English, but are in the quarter-finals of the World Cup

It was fun. After topping their group, France were pushed to their limits by England on Wednesday, October 5, in the Round of 16. World Table Tennis Team Championship. In Chengdu (China), the Blues are favorites for this clash but will do well to give a good scare. “It was a good fight, but we know, the British will never give up.”laughs Emmanuel Raches, head of the French delegation.

Despite a very strong performance against the world number 22 by Liam Pitchford (3-2), Felix Lebrun gave his partners the decisive point after a tense encounter against Samuel Walker (3-0). . The tricolor celebration speaks volumes about the fight that Patrick Silla’s men won, without a hitch.

Excellent contribution by Jules Rolland

Leading by one point to nil, Alexis Lebrun then dismissed Samuel Walker (3-0) with ease, Jules Rolland was called upon to compensate for Simon Cousy’s package. Favorite Emmanuel Lebesson, still more experienced in major events, beat Thorigny-Foilard-trained player David McBeath in five sets to give his team a 2-1 advantage.

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Blues team in the 1/4 finals of the Worlds ??
Felix LeBrun wins decisive match point ??
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— French Table Tennis Federation (@ffttofficiel) October 5, 2022

But Alexis Lebrun was very fair against Liam Pitchford (2-3), forcing his younger brother Felix (16) to play a decisive game to qualify for the quarter-finals. The latter responded at the bottom of the table with an impressive win over Samuel Walker (3-0). “It’s always good to win, even if it’s narrow. Hi Emmanuel Raches. This opens up a medal quarter-final for us. We can’t wait to be there. Boys will give maximum and with our young team, we never know what will happen. »

Read more. Table tennis. Results and performance of the French teams at the World Teams in China

France will know their opponent this Thursday October 6 at the end of the match between Germany and Croatia. So the Blues could once again overcome the Mannschaft against whom they lost in the group stage. A medal is at stake. Remember that a French team has not finished on the world stage since 1997, and the final of four Musketeers (Gatien, Éloi, Chila, Legoût).

Game sheet

France England: 3-2

» Mark List: Liam Pitchford defeated Felix LeBrun (3-2), Alexis LeBrun defeated Samuel Walker (3-0), Jules Roland defeated David McBeath (3-2), Liam Pitchford defeated Alexis LeBrun (3-2), Felix LeBrun defeated Samuel Walker (3-2) . 3-0).