Sports
World Tourney: NTTF Praises Team Nigeria
Nigeria’s quest for
promotion to Division One suffered a setback at the 2014 World Team Table Tennis Championships when the Segun Toriola lost narrowly to England in the quarter-final stage.
The country therefore settled for the seventh place in Division Two.
A statement from the Nigerian Table Tennis Federation (NTTF) said from the performance of the team in Tokyo, Japan, it was obvious that this was an outstanding outing for the team at the championships.
“However, the encounter against England has also put the team in good frame for the 2014 Commonwealth Games holding in Glasgow, Scotland in July,’’ it said.
It added that England dominated Nigeria in most of their meetings but with what transpired in Tokyo at the weekend, Nigeria had returned to its fine form with the excellent performance.
The country was represented by the quartet of Toriola, Aruna Quadri, Ojo Onaolapo and Kazeem Makanjuola.
“Having come through from the group to beat Turkey in the knockout stage, the team started the match against England on a good note when Quadri, who finished 16th at the 2014 Spanish Open beat Paul Drinkhall 12-10, 6-11, 11-9, 11-6 to give Nigeria a 1-0 lead.
Drinkhall had won the Spanish Open a few weeks ago in the city of Almeria in Spain but against Quadri he was beaten “black and blue”.
The statement said Toriola improved on the lead, when he fought well to defeat Liam Pitchford, 10-12, 12-10, 8-11, 11-6, 11-6.
But the turning point for the English side was against Onaolapo, who was beaten 11-5, 11-7, 11-6 by Daniel Reed.
This put the overall result at 2-1 with Nigeria leading.
The win against Onaolapo brought out the best in the British players that went to win their next two matches against Quadri and Toriola.
In the fourth game, Pitchford avenged Drinkhall’s loss to Quadri, when he overwhelmed Quadri 5-11, 11-6, 5-11, 6-11.
Drinkhall, however, rounded up the game with 6-11, 11-9, 5-11, 9-11 win over Toriola to put the overall result at 3-2.
England captain, Drinkhall, admitted after the match that the encounter against the Nigerians remained the most difficult game for them in the tournament.
“We’re really happy to have come through; we had a difficult start to the match with me losing the first match.
“I think if I would have won that, we might have won 3-0; this was the first real test for our team and I am happy we made it through. I think we can take this match as positive,” Drinkhall said.
Also, table tennis buffs lauded the Nigerians for giving a good account of themselves against England as well as their overall performance in the competition.
“I never expected much from the Nigerians but since the start of the tournament, they have proved to be a good team, especially with what they played against England.
Only Denmark, ranked 21st globally, sits higher among nations that failed to qualify for the tournament, which is being co-hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada.
England and Chelsea legend John Terry was among those to voice his disappointment, describing Nigeria as a significant loss to a tournament that features 48 nations for the first time.
“Nigeria will be a big miss. This is a World Cup for participants who haven’t had the opportunity to play in the tournament. I would have loved to see a top team like Nigeria there because they’ve got some great individuals. They’re a great nation,” Terry said during a virtual roundtable session organised by SuperSport.
“I think they are a big miss because Nigeria probably would have gone further in the competition, but unfortunately, one side’s loss is another’s gain,” the former England captain added.
Eric Chelle’s side finished second in Group C of the CAF World Cup qualifiers behind South Africa, who secured automatic qualification. Nigeria kept their hopes alive with a playoff semi-final victory over Gabon before falling to the Democratic Republic of Congo on penalties in the decisive playoff final — their second successive absence from the World Cup after also missing the 2022 tournament in Qatar.
The Nigeria Football Federation later challenged DR Congo’s qualification, alleging the use of ineligible players during the campaign, but the appeal was dismissed.
Despite missing the World Cup, the Super Eagles remain Africa’s 3rd highest-ranked team behind Morocco, who sit seventh in the world, and Senegal. Algeria and Egypt complete the continent’s top five.
Defending champions Argentina enter the tournament as the world’s top-ranked side, ahead of Spain, France, England and Portugal. Brazil are sixth, followed by Morocco, the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany.
The next FIFA World Ranking will be released on July 20, a day after the World Cup final.
Chima Akachukwu and Miracle Akhigbe are among the 16 notable stars picked by the Nigeria Cricket Federation (NCF) for the forthcoming Namibia Tour, where the YellowGreens will compete in a T20 and 50-Over Tri-Series, featuring hosts Namibia and Hong Kong China.
Both players make their way back into the YellowGreens fold after periods away from the side and will be eager to contribute their experience and quality as Nigeria pursues success in Namibia.
The NCF said yesterday that the squad, which departs Nigeria today, forms part of the national team’s continued preparations for future international assignments as the YellowGreens seek to build on recent performances and strengthen their standing on the global stage.
Leading the squad is Captain Sulaimon Runsewe, who will spearhead Nigeria’s campaign against two formidable opponents in what promises to be a highly competitive series.
The selected squad combines experienced internationals with emerging talents, providing the technical crew an opportunity to assess player development and team combinations in both the T20 and 50-over formats.
The team will be led on tour by Coaches Leke Oyede and Tamuno John, who will oversee preparations and match operations during the opening phase of the series.
Joining the squad later in Namibia will be the newly appointed Head Coach and High Performance Manager, Stephen Magongo, whose arrival marks another significant step in the Federation’s commitment to strengthening the national team structure and enhancing player development pathways.
Supporting the coaching staff are Team Analyst Jamal Okechukwu, Strength and Conditioning Coach Seye Olympio, and Team Physiotherapist Timothy Adesomowo, forming a well-rounded technical crew focused on maximising player performance and welfare throughout the tour.
The NCF views the Namibia Tri-Series as an important platform for the continued growth of the national team, offering valuable international exposure and competitive match experience against quality opposition. The series will provide the players and technical crew with another opportunity to evaluate progress, fine-tune strategies, and build momentum ahead of future international competitions.
The YellowGreens will face Namibia and Hong Kong China in both T20 and 50-over contests, with the matches expected to test the team’s adaptability, discipline, and resilience in challenging conditions.
Blessing Otu on Monday overcame hard-fighting Kelvin Bebe- Emmanuella in two sets of 6-1, 6-3 to qualify for the second round of the women’s singles of the ongoing 47th Central Bank of Nigeria Senior Tennis Championship, held at the Tennis Courts of the package “B” of the Moshood Abiola National Stadium, Abuja.
Speaking after the round of 32 game, Otu, who will be 19 years old in September, said she capitalised on her opponent’s weaknesses to gain victory, having studied her game very well.
“Bebe is a very good and tough player. But I studied her game and did the job well.
“Although she tried to come back in the second set, I punctured all her tricks to win the match and move on. I wish I could continue like this in the rest of my games,” she said.
Another member of the Otu family, John Out, was also victorious as he defeated Mohammed Abdusalam 2-1 (6-2, 6-7, 6-1) in the men’s singles category to advance into the round of 32.
But the third Otu in the game, Thomas, was not that lucky as he lost by 6-0, 7-5 in two straight sets to Danjuma Isaac.
In other matches, Michael Emmanuel defeated Ibrahim Aminu to advance, while Drimiya Mevi outclassed Seyi Ogunsakin by beating him 2-1 (6-7, 6-3, 6-1). Action continues tomorrow when other top players, including the men’s singles top seed, Abua Cannice, join the chase for honours.