Liam Pitchford is set to compete in the Europe Top 16 competition in Thessaloniki, Greece today as the tournament gets underway.

Pitchford last played at the WTT Contender Budapest last month, after which he switched off from the sport for a couple of weeks before returning to practise in Copenhagen, where he used to live and train.

And he says that combination has revived his mentality and helped him rediscover his love for the sport after a difficult year which included elimination in his first match at the Olympics.

The England No 1 said: “I took a couple of weeks off after Hungary to get my head back on and not think about table tennis for a bit.

“It’s been a tough year and I needed to have a break to get myself ready for the upcoming tournaments. I enjoyed it, I didn’t really do a lot but I was in the gym every day and I also managed to get my golf handicap down a bit. I shot an 80, which is a personal best, so it’s getting better!”

You can watch Pitchford live on ETTU TV at 1430 (UK time) on Table 2.