Christmas came a week early for Timo Boll. Along with his team, Borussia Düsseldorf, the German ace paddler claimed the European Champions League title on December 18, 2020. "It is clear that it was good for all of us. Now we've tasted blood again," says team captain Boll, sounding more like Captain Blood, or perhaps another type of pelagic predator, the kind with a telltale dorsal fin. While Boll is the highest ranked player on the team at world #10 and the most (ahem) experienced at age 39, he was not necessarily the MVP. Battling back problems, Boll sometimes took a back seat to teammate Anton Källberg, the 23-year-old from Sweden who went a stunning 14-1 over the season. "Anton is still a young athlete who is now in a flow and works consistently well," says Boll. "This is also noticeable at the table." Now, Boll, Källberg and company are circling their next prey at the Liebherr Cup. In Saturday's semifinal, Borussia Düsseldorf takes on ASV Grünwettersbach. While Borussia Düsseldorf have gotten the better of all but one of their previous ten tilts with Grünwettersbach, the veteran Boll knows better than to look past a hungry team with nothing to lose. "They are a very strong opponent that we don't judge based on our previous record, but based on the individual strengths of the players," says Boll. The other semifinal features TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt and TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen. Asked which he would prefer to face in the finals should he and Borussia advance as expected, Boll is wise and diplomatic enough not to jump at the chum. "First of all we have to beat Grünwettersbach," Boll reminds himself and his teammates. "Everything else is a dream of the future." Like a pack of sharks, Timo Boll and Borussia Düsseldorf do not dream of the future but live completely in the moment, their senses finely attuned to any evidence of nearby life. Unfortunately for ASV Grünwettersbach, these insatiable eating machines have whetted their appetites on some Christmas treats and are on the hunt for more to celebrate the new year.

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