Quadri Aruna loses to the Romanian Ionescu and withdraws from Paris 2024

Nigerian tennis star Quadri Aruna succumbed to the pressure as Romanian Eduard Ionescu came back from a 3-0 deficit to secure a 4-3 victory in the round of 16 of the men’s singles table tennis event at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

Aruna started off strong, taking a 3-0 lead with scores of 11-8, 11-9 and 11-6 in sets against Ionesu on Saturday, July 27. Her victory seemed imminent, especially after fellow player Olajide Omotayo’s earlier loss to Iran’s Noshad Alamiyan.

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However, Ionescu fought back, winning the fourth game 11-8 and then taking the deciding game 13-11 to advance to the round of 32.

Aruna’s defeat marks the end of Nigeria’s medal hopes in the men’s singles tournament.

Nigerian duo Offiong Edem and Fatimo Bello will next compete in the women’s singles event on Sunday 28 July and Monday 29 July respectively. Edem will take on Brazilian Bruna Takahashi at 21:00 on Sunday, while newcomer Bello will compete against Frenchwoman Jia Nan Yuan at 9:00 on Monday.

By Dotun Omisakin

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