Quadri Aruna, Nigeria’s sole flagbearer at the ITTF World Cup, Macao 2024, has been drawn in Group 15 of the men’s singles, a statement by the African Table Tennis Federation (ATTF) confirmed on Sunday.
As per the statement, Quadri Aruna will compete against Portugal’s Marcos Freitas and Puerto Rico’s Daniel Gonzalez in Group 15.
Similarly, Egypt’s Omar Assar faces a challenging task in advancing from his group.
Forty-eight players have been divided into 16 groups of three players each, with the group winners progressing to the second stage.
Aruna, a regular contender in ITTF World Cups, remains the only African to have reached the quarterfinals of the $1 million prize money tournament.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Aruna is set to commence his campaign against Portugal’s Freitas on April 15, with his final group match scheduled for April 16 against Puerto Rico’s Gonzalez.
In addition, Egypt’s trio of Omar Assar, Ahmed Saleh, and Mohamed El-Beiali have been assigned to Groups 16, 11, and 9, respectively.
African Games champion Assar will face Sweden’s Truls Moregard and Iran’s Noshad Alamiyan.
Egyptian veteran Saleh faces a challenging Group 11, where he will compete against former European champion Dan Qui of Germany and Japan’s Shunsuke Togami.
El-Beiali, making his debut at the ITTF World Cup, will contend for the top spot against Korea’s Jang Woojin and France’s Simon Gauzy in Group 9.
Also, three Egyptians and a Cameroonian will represent Africa in the women’s singles, as Yousra Helmy, Hana Goda, and Mariam Alhodaby will campaign in groups nine, 12, and 11.
Cameroon’s Sarah Hanffou is set to compete in Group 11 alongside Korea’s Joo Cheonhui and Brazil’s Bruna Takahashi.
According to the ITTF, top seed Wang Chuqin of China will launch his inaugural Men’s World Cup campaign against Kirill Gerassimenko and An Jaehyun in Group 1.
With an impeccable track record against both opponents (2:0 against Gerassimenko and 5:0 against An), Wang seems to have a favorable route to progress to the next stage.
Having clinched two previous titles in Macao at the WTT Champions Macao 2023 and 2022, Wang is poised to deliver an impressive performance next week, undoubtedly thrilling fans.
Defending champion Fan Zhendong will begin his title defense against Wong Chun Ting and Benedikt Duda.
With an impressive 16-match winning streak, Fan aims to maintain his momentum by securing his 17th and 18th victories early in the tournament.
Having recently claimed the WTT Feeder Varazdin 2024 title and secured a mixed doubles ticket to the Paris Olympic Games, Wong is currently in excellent form and will pose a significant challenge to the World No. 2.
In the women’s singles, top seed Sun Yingsha will face her initial challenges in Group 1 against Chen Szu-Yu and Zhu Chengzhu.
Having faced both opponents multiple times and emerged victorious on each occasion, Sun’s campaign in the World Cup is expected to commence without major obstacles.
However, with the new four-game format, the outcome on the table remains unpredictable, providing opportunities for any player to seize victory.
Defending champion Chen Meng will confront Sreeja Akula and Natalia Bajor in Group 4 as she strives to reclaim her title.
This encounter will mark the first meeting between the 2020 Women’s World Cup winner and either Akula or Bajor.
It is noteworthy that Akula and Bajor have faced each other only once before, in 2019, when Akula emerged victorious with a narrow 4-3 margin.
The 2016 Women’s World Cup winner, Miu Hirano, will commence her 2024 World Cup campaign, facing off against Jia Nan Yuan and Jocelyn Lam in Group 14.
This will mark the first encounter for any of these players on the international stage.