Nigerian Table Tennis star Aruna faces familiar foe in Bangkok

Quadri Aruna, Africa’s sole competitor at the WTT Star Contender Bangkok, will face Japanese player Yukida Uda in the second round of the men’s singles.

Aruna, seeded fourth in the tournament, has a history with Uda, having narrowly defeated him 4-3 in a thrilling match at the 2018 Hong Kong Open. Uda comes into the clash confident after his first-round victory over Portugal’s Joao Monteiro (3-2).

While aiming for his first WTT title, Aruna’s primary focus is on accumulating ranking points to improve his seeding for the upcoming Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

The 2024 Africa Cup champion hopes to surpass his Rio 2016 quarter-final finish and become the first African player to medal in Olympic table tennis.

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The WTT Star Contender Bangkok offers a total prize pool of $250,000, with 600 ITTF World Ranking Points awarded to the champions. Defending champions Lin Gaoyuan and Chen Xingtong of China will be looking to retain their titles after securing the Triple Crown in 2023.

This revised news story focuses on Aruna’s upcoming match and his Olympic aspirations, while keeping the overall context of the tournament.