Quadri, African stars fall short at ITTF World Cup

Africa’s hopes of making a bold statement at the 2025 ITTF World Cup were dashed as all its representatives bowed out in the first stage of the prestigious tournament in Macao, China. Nigeria’s Quadri Aruna and Egypt’s trio of Dina Meshref, Omar Assar, and Hana Goda were all eliminated after failing to progress to the […]

Africa’s hopes of making a bold statement at the 2025 ITTF World Cup were dashed as all its representatives bowed out in the first stage of the prestigious tournament in Macao, China.

Nigeria’s Quadri Aruna and Egypt’s trio of Dina Meshref, Omar Assar, and Hana Goda were all eliminated after failing to progress to the second round.

Omar Assar was the first to fall, losing 3-1 to South Korea’s Jaehyun in a must-win match. Despite being the reigning 2025 ITTF Africa Cup champion, Assar couldn’t overcome the South Korean star’s sharp form. Reflecting on the match, Jaehyun said, “I played well today. Assar is an excellent player, so I did a lot of pre-match preparations, and it seems I executed them well.”

Dina Meshref delivered a gutsy performance against China’s Man Kuai but ultimately lost 3-1. Kuai acknowledged Meshref’s skill and left-handed advantage, noting, “It’s our first encounter, and my opponent is a leftie with great strength. At the beginning of the first game, I played a little too cautiously, which gave Meshref a huge opportunity to win. After losing game 1, I didn’t give up and focused on each point.”

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Hana Goda also couldn’t advance, falling 3-1 to European star Sofia Polcanova, despite showing promise during the match.

Quadri Aruna was the last African player standing, but he too exited the competition after a 4-0 defeat to Sweden’s Anton Kallberg. Although Aruna showed early dominance in the first two sets, he couldn’t convert his advantage and continues to struggle to break his losing streak.

Kallberg’s victory marks his consecutive wins over the Nigerian, reflecting his dominance since they began to play against each other in 2021.

Their first encounter was during a semifinal in the 2021 World Table Tennis (WTT) Contender in Tunis. Kallberg struggled to secure a 4-3 victory.

The following year, during the WTT Champions, the Swedish ended the Nigerian journey in the Round of 32, with a 3-0 victory.

Similarly, in the 2024 WTT Smash in China, it was an easy ride for the Swedish who defeated Aruna, 3-1 in the Round of 32.