Pattantyus, world ranked 82, was one of the leading players forced to compete in the qualifying groups at the showpiece continental event before the seeds enter in the main draw stage.

He dropped two sets against Israeli opponent Omri Ben Ari in his opening clash before battling back to triumph 4-2.

“We met for a first time, but I studied and analysed his game," said the home hope.

"Still, I did some mistakes at the beginning, I went back because I expected he would play differently on his spins. 

"The service game was a problem for me at the beginning, but when I started to feel the ball it got better.“

Team-mate Bence Majoros also made a good start at Tüskecsarnok Hall by surprising Serbian veteran Aleksandar Karakasevic with a 4-1 victory.

France's Tristan Flore, at 71 the highest ranked non-seed in the draw, also suffered a shock 4-2 loss to Aliaksandr Khanin of Belarus.

There were less surprises in the women's singles, where the three highest rated qualifiers - Ukraine's Ganna Gaponova, Spain's Galia Dvorak, The Netherlands' Britt Eerland - all started with two victories.

Hope hope Szandra Pergel also made a winning start, triumphing 4-1 over Egle Stuckyte of Lithuania and Charlotte Carey of Wales.

Hungarian number one Georgina Póta is a seed so has not yet begun competing.

The event, taking place at a state-of-the-art venue completed in 2014, is also being billed as a way to promote Budapest as the city bids for the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

“We are looking forward to welcoming athletes and fans of the world’s most popular racket sport - with an estimated 300 million players and 222 member national associations worldwide,” said Budapest 2024 Sports Director, Attila Mizsér.

“It’s an incredibly popular sport in Hungary, and this support can be seen in our players’ success, who come in at second place on the [all-time] World Championship gold medal table. 

"We are certain that this enthusiasm comes across in our plans for table tennis in 2024.”