Table Tennis: Aruna, Bello, Lead Nigeria’s Contingent To Africa Cup In Kenya

World ranked No.12 Aruna will be the highest rated player in the competition

Quadri Aruna, the 2022 Africa Cup runner-up, and Fatimo Bello have been listed among the top elite players that will lead the Nigeria contingent to this year’s edition, which takes place at the Moi International Stadium in Nairobi from 4 to 6 May.

Aruna, who has been active in the WTT Series this year, will hope to claim the title this year after an injury knocked him out of it in 2022 in Lagos.

The Nigerian ranked 12th in the world as the highest-rated African in the competition and will head the seeding list ahead of defending champion Omar Assar of Egypt in the men’s singles.

In the women’s singles, Bello, a surprise runner’s up in 2022, will be returning to the big stage again with the hope of repeating her feat against the star-studded list released by the African Table Tennis Federation (ATTF) for the championships.

Bello, a three-time West African champion, is currently defending her title at the 2023 West Africa Regional Championships in Accra, Ghana, but will have to contest against defending champion Hana Goda of Egypt and former champion Dina Meshref, who has been in superb form in recent times.

Joining Aruna and Bello on the Nigerian team are Taiwo Mati and Tosin Esther Oribamise, who will compete in the men’s and women’s events in Kenya.

Mati, now based in Portugal, will hope to re-enact the performance that saw him hit the semi-final stage at the African Championships in Algeria last year as he works his way into the top echelon of the African table tennis ladder.

Oribamise was a last-minute replacement for Edem Offiong, whose club engagement in Europe prevented her from being part of the tournament.

Egypt has assembled a strong six-man team for the men’s and women’s event as Assar and Goda defend their titles while Meshref and Yousra Helmy, as well as Ahmed Saleh and Youssef Abdul-Aziz, complete the North African side.

The tournament also marks the return of Senegal’s Ibrahim Diaw, who is yet to get back to full fitness after an injury sidelined him.

Meanwhile, this year’s Africa Cup will serve as a dress rehearsal for the first World Championships taking place in Africa in 84 years, which is due to take place in Durban, South Africa from 20 to 28 May.