Nigerian table tennis star Quadri Aruna was dealt a first round blow in the men’s singles of the WTT Champions tournament in Xinxiang, losing 3-0 (11-2,11-9,11-7) to Chinese Taipei’s Lin Yun-Ju, at the Pingyuan Sport Centre’s Infinity Arena.
Aruna, who was recently ranked as the 11th best table tennis player in the world and first in Africa, faced a daunting task against World number 10 Yun-Ju.
Lin Yun-Ju and Quadri Aruna went full throttle here at #WTTXinxiang! 💥
More exhilarating matches to come from #WTTChampions Xinxiang, watch it all at https://t.co/WzpUvKTnKl or https://t.co/n3fDYgQHFx 🎥 pic.twitter.com/ZDOyiqyxxc
— World Table Tennis (@WTTGlobal) April 9, 2023
However, the Nigerian was no match for his opponent as Yun Ju claimed victory against Aruna for the fourth time in his career in the men’s singles event.
Aruna last met Yun-Ju in the 2022 WTT Cup finals, losing 3-1. In 2022, they met at the WTT Contender as Yun-Ju won 3-1. They also faced each other in 2018 at the World Tour Swedish Open as Aruna lost 4-1 to Yun-Jun.
The latest 3-0 loss at the 2023 WTT Champions in Xinxiang will be wake up call for Aruna, as the highest ranked African player bowed out of the tournament courtesy of his nemesis Yun-Ju.
