The German headed into his semi-final match as the underdog against top seed and world number two Fan Zhendong at the GETEC-Arena in Magdeburg.

Ovtcharov made a stunning start of the match by winning the opening two games, only for his Chinese opponent to level the tie.

Their battle would ultimately go the distance, but Ovtcharov held his nerve in the crucial seventh game to triumph 13-11, 11-7, 7-11, 3-11, 11-9, 8-11, 15-13.

It set up an all-German clash against Timo Boll to the delight of the home crowd, with the tie a repeat of the ITTF World Cup final.

Ovtcharov prevailed on that occasion in six games, adding to his marathon win over Boll in the China Open in June.

The Ukrainian-born player’s stamina was tested again, as he was forced into a seven-game contest for the second straight match.

A closely fought battle ultimately concluded with Ovtcharov taking a 9-11, 11-5, 11-9, 6-11, 11-7, 7-11, 11-6 win.

The result gave Ovtcharov a third German Open title, placing him just one behind Boll.

While Chinese players were absent from the men’s final, they had proved dominant throughout the women’s event.

Top seeds Zhu Yuling and Chen Meng would meet in the final, with the tie going the full distance.

Zhu had appeared on course to secure the victory when she led three games to her rival’s two, but Chen edged the sixth to force a decider.

Second seed Chen seized the momentum to dominate the key final game, resulting in her claiming a 9-11, 8-11, 13-11, 9-11, 13-11, 11-9, 11-4 win.