Nigeria’s Quadri Aruna has advanced to the men’s singles round of 16 at the ongoing ITTF World Championships in Doha, Qatar, after a hard-fought 4-2 victory over Germany’s Benedikt Duda on Tuesday.
The 36-year-old table tennis star delivered a composed performance in the round-of-32 clash at the Lusail Sports Arena, winning 11-9, 4-11, 11-8, 2-11, 12-10, 11-9 in a 58-minute thriller.
It was Aruna’s first win over Duda since 2019, ending a run of previous losses to the German.
After trading early sets, Aruna held his nerve in the final two to seal the win and book his place in the last 16, where he will face the winner of the match between Brazil’s Hugo Calderano and Kazakhstan’s Kirill Gerassimenko on Wednesday.
Aruna remains Nigeria’s sole representative at the tournament following the exit of Olajide Omotayo and Kabirat Ayoola, who were knocked out in the mixed doubles second round by South Korean opposition.
Elsewhere, Egypt’s 17-year-old Hana Goda is the only other African still in contention and will face China’s Wang Yidi in the women’s singles round of 32.
