"I will not make age an issue of this campaign," said incumbent president Ronald Reagan in a 1984 debate with Democratic challenger Walter Mondale. Reagan, drawing on his background as an actor, solemnly appeared to be taking the high road against questions of his age, then a record for a US president. Then came Reagan's devastating punchline: "I am not going to exploit, for political purposes, my opponent's youth and inexperience." Although not for political purposes, Germany's Bastian Steger has proven quite adept at exploiting the youth and inexperience of his opponents. At 39, the table tennis legend has been advancing the German cause for over two decades, helping his team win bronze at both the 2012 and 2016 Olympics. Steger's latest master class was conducted at the Düsseldorf Masters, held at the ARAG CenterCourt in Düsseldorf, Germany. The weekly tournament series is open to players already enlisted in German table tennis leagues, always a tough international crowd. The first edition was captured by Germany's own Timo Boll, and the last two by his compatriot Dimitrij Ovtcharv. The fourth installment saw Steger make his debut in the event. At world #125, Steger was seeded sixth. The USA's Kanak Jha, world #27, assumed the tournament's leading role in the absence of Boll and Ovtcharov. The veteran Steger, however, has been around long enough to know that seeding, like age, is just a number. He promptly overcame the 20-year-old Jha 4-1 in the quarterfinals, earning a final four matchup with his compatriot Benedikt Duda, the third seed ranked #39 in the world. In a wild semifinal, Steger fell behind one game to the 26-year-old Duda, then stormed back to win three straight. He held two match points in game four, only to lose the game, and then the next as Duda forced a decider. The young Duda held a match point of his own at 10-9. Digging deep, the veteran Steger held on to win three straight points and the match, (4-11, 11-6, 11-6, 11-9, 14-16, 9-11, 12-10). "It was really close," said a relieved Steger. "But I could have done it a bit earlier, when I had two match points at 3-1." For all his trouble, Steger earned a spot in the finals with another troublesome youngster in the form of #4 seed Qiu Dang, a fellow German teammate listed 52nd in the world rankings. The 23-year-old Qiu, a modern penholder proficient in the reverse backhand, was looking to reverse the trend of Steger regulating the youth like Kindergarten Cop. Fortunately for the fans, watching safely at home, Steger's flair for the dramatic had not abandoned him. Twice, he fell behind and fought back in the match. After trailing 0-2 and 2-3, Steger forced a deciding seventh game. Then, serving at 9-8 with a chance to earn two match points, Steger faced a true test of nerve when he missed his own serve. While an own-goal at such a critical juncture could be devastating, Steger drew on his vast wealth of experience and remained calm, coolly winning the last two points against Qiu's serve, (7-11, 8-11, 17-15, 11-7, 7-11, 11-9, 11-9). "It was a close game," said the victorious Steger. "In the end, it was only two balls that tipped the scales, just like against Bene [Benedikt Duda]. Everyone played extremely well today. We train together every day. There are hardly any secrets left. At this Masters, the happier ending was on my side." At the end of the day, the tough old guy used his smarts and experience to get the better of his younger challengers, all of whom were ranked significantly higher. It almost seems as if scripted in a Hollywood movie. Age, as it turns out, was the issue of the campaign, not a liability but an advantage. Bastian Steger just won one for the Gipper.

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