Nigeria’s Quadri Aruna, has taken table tennis in Africa to new heights as he is now rated 13th best in the world according to the latest ITTF rankings released on Tuesday.
Aruna thus became the best player from the continent to be rated among the top 15 in the world.
Recall that the Oyo State-born ping-ponger at the 2021 ITTF World Table Tennis Championships which ended in Houston, USA, became the first African player to play in the round of 16 and the quarter-final in the global tourney.
Aruna was ranked 17 in the world before his exploits at the last championship which enabled him to gain four steps and now rated 13th according to the ITTF rankings, the highest level ever attained by an African in the sport.
The 2014 World Table Tennis Player of the Year has earned a place among the top 20 players invited for the 2021 World Table Tennis (WTTF) Cup Finals scheduled for December 4 to 7 in Singapore.
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“I am so excited to improve in my world rankings, and this means I must work hard to remain on top in the world. This is another task I must face in my career, and I will not relent to do my best as I look forward to the WTTF Cup Finals taking place this weekend in Singapore,” Aruna, who was also the first African to play in the quarter-final of the Olympics [Rio 2016] said according to the ITTF-Africa Press Release.
Meanwhile, president, Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF), Ishaku Tikon, believes Aruna’s feat would inspire other upcoming players to work harder to attain excellence.
“We are so excited that within one week, Aruna has set two African records as the first to reach the quarter-final of the World Championships as well as the first African to be ranked 13th in the world.
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“This for us as a Federation means we must find another Aruna who can surpass what he has done. Our focus remains the cadet and junior [players] and we are going to ensure we organise tournaments and expose them to international competitions.
“I must also commend Aruna for his conduct within and outside the table because he has shown to be a good ambassador of the sport and we hope to compliment this feat by ensuring we unearth more Arunas,” Tikon said.