Another of the big title favourites is out of the running at WTT Champions Frankfurt 2025, with top seed Hugo Calderano falling at the hands of Simon Gauzy in a gripping Round of 16 showdown on Friday afternoon (11-4, 11-8, 6-11, 11-9).
Calderano, who suffered a shock opening round exit last week in Montpellier, was looking to make amends in Frankfurt. As the top-seeded entry, he would have fancied his chances of locking up that elusive WTT Champions trophy in the German city.
But he would ultimately be undone by Simon Gauzy, who came out fighting right from the off, tackling the top seed head on while dominating exchanges back away from the table. The pace of play was breathtaking as both players tried to outdo the other, but it was Gauzy who got Süwag Energie ARENA rocking, putting on a show under the purple lights.
Not prepared to go down without a fight, Calderano responded in the third, and with four of the opening five points in game four also going his way, a decider looked imminent.
However, Gauzy regrouped, getting down to business as he slowly clawed his way back. At 6-6, the Frenchman showed great athleticism to retrieve a forehand out wide, stabilising his balance to salvage the lead, and he wouldn’t fall behind again, kicking the after burners into action to close out the match 11-9 in the fourth.
'I don’t want to call it revenge because we are such good friends, but of course I want to win all the time. He’s one of the best players in the world, so I knew it would be hard. I played well against him at China Smash 2025, but he was too good in that event. Today, I played really good tactically. Normally, when there are big rallies, I tend to beat most players, but against him he plays too strong so I wanted to avoid that, and that’s exactly what I did and I’m really happy to beat him after four or five losses in a row.
Eliminating one of the outstanding title candidates here in Frankfurt, another WTT Champions quarterfinal awaits Simon Gauzy, building on his Top 8 finish from Montpellier. Lee Sang Su, who upstaged former Frankfurt champion Lin Yun-Ju last night, is next on Gauzy’s radar.
Elsewhere, over in the session's Women's Singles action, 17-year-old Egyptian star Hana Goda is through to her second WTT Champions quarterfinal, defeating Bruna Takahashi in a five-game roller coaster (11-8, 10-12, 11-8, 6-11, 11-8).
Making history as the first African player to reach a WTT Champions quarterfinal last year in Montpellier, Goda has now matched that stunning effort here in Frankfurt, proving that she's more than a one-hit wonder. Keep your eyes fixed on her progress this weekend.
Published by: Yotomi Media Telifisan.
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