Germany claimed their second victory in Kazan, but Ukraine proved, that even the smallest marginal can be a deciding factor. 

Already from the beginning of the tie the atmosphere was intense. Maria Ulitina from Ukraine and Fabienne Deprez made the first match a true thriller, with the best possible outcome for the Germans.

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Fabienne Deprez clinched the victory against Ulitina 18-21 21-14 21-18 after 57 minutes of play, and the World number 52 left the Ukrainians with the pressure.

- I hope that Luise (Heim) got less pressure now. It is always good leading 1-0, Deprez says.

Singles victory
Louise Heim and Natalya Voytsekh also delivered an intense and interesting match in the second women’s singles. Heim won the first game 24-22 while Voytsekh took the second game 22-20. The Ukrainian World number 94, who in 2016 beat Heim in Italian International, could not repeat the victory from 2016, and Heim doubled the German lead winning 21-15 in the decider.

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Yvonne Li secured the German victory winning in straight games against 22-20 21-17 against Maryna Ilyinskaya. It was the third time Yvonne Li beat the Ukrainian. 

Germany took a 5-0 win winning the two doubles and will tonight face Ireland.

See all the results from the 2018 European Men’s & Women’s Team Championships here