Nigeria’s Quadri Aruna secured his spot at the season-ending World Table Tennis Finals, an event gathering the top 16 players worldwide in Doha, Qatar.
The African number one booked his place as the 15th player in the world and he is the sole African representative, with his confirmation coming on Thursday, November 9.
The WTT Finals stands as the pinnacle of the WTT Series, offering the 16 best men’s players worldwide a chance to vie for a share of the $340,000 prize pool and crucial ranking points to bolster their qualification for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Aruna holds the distinction of being the sole African player to have graced the WTT Finals, having participated in the inaugural edition in Singapore and the 2022 edition in China.
Notably, during his debut appearance, he caused a significant upset by defeating China’s Liang Jingkun, ranked eighth globally, in the quarterfinals. However, he was subsequently defeated by Brazil’s Hugo Calderano.
In the 2022 edition in China, he exited in the first round after a 3-1 loss to Lin Yun-Ju of Chinese Taipei.
Aruna who is set to make his third consecutive appearance, will compete against the world’s elite players from January 3 to 5, 2024.
He maintains the distinction of being the first African to reach the quarterfinals of this prestigious tournament.
