President of Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF), Wahid Oshodi, has assured Nigeria’s table tennis sensation, Aruna Quadri, of the NTTF’s continuous support.
Aruna Quadri
Quadri
Reacting to the September International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) ranking where Quadri is now 73rd in the world, Oshodi said he was not surprised with the latest development.
He said: “Quadri’s performance in recent time did not come on a platter of gold, as the he remains one of the most disciplined and hardworking players the country had in recent times.
“I am not surprised that Quadri is doing well in recent times; he has always been a very disciplined and hardworking player who just needs to be supported.
“For us, it is a good one for the country, as the federation would continue to support the players in their quest to progress in their career.
“We are proud of what Quadri has done and will still do, and we hope sponsors will avail themselves the opportunity to support the player in his quest to make it to the zenith of the game in the world.”
From being ranked 257th in February this year, Quadri became the biggest mover in the September ITTF ranking.
In August, he was listed as one of the active players by ITTF. As if that was not enough, the Oyo State-born player, who was ranked 111, caused two major upsets at the last Czech Open when he defeated world’s number 24 and 38 to make it to the last eight of the championship.
As the first Nigerian to achieve such feat in an ITTF Pro Tour, he moved from 111 to 73 in the world, following the release of the September ranking by the world table tennis ruling body.
For this feat, he is now the second highly-rated African player in the world behind Egypt’s Omar Assar, who is in number 70. At the Czech Open, Assar failed to make it beyond the second round (round of 32), while Quadri made it to the quarterfinal of the competition where he was edged out by eventual runner-up of the tournament, Germany’s Patrick Baum.
