Nigeria’s Quadri Aruna has overtaken Egypt’s Omar Assar to become Africa’s highest-ranked table tennis player, according to the latest International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) rankings released today, Tuesday, March 18.
Aruna now occupies the 18th position globally with 1290 points, moving up one place from previous rankings. This achievement comes despite finishing as runner-up at the 2025 ITTF Africa Cup.
The Nigerian star’s consistent performances at World Table Tennis (WTT) tournaments this year have contributed to his rise. Aruna is the only African male player to reach the semifinals of the WTT Contender in Doha, repeating his 2023 feat earlier this year with another semifinal finish.
This achievement propelled him ahead of Assar, who was crowned champion of the 2025 ITTF Africa Cup two weeks ago but dropped from 17th to 19th position with 1250 points.
Meanwhile, Aruna has been selected to participate in the inaugural WTT Contender Chennai in India, replacing German star Dimitrij Ovtcharov. He will compete against nine other elite players for the $270,000 prize money at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium from March 25 to 30.
Egypt’s Omar Assar will also represent Africa at the tournament, alongside Denmark’s Jonathan Groth (world No. 17), Brazil’s Hugo Calderano (world No. 6), and Japan’s Tomokazu Harimoto (world No. 4).
Aruna has faced challenges in 2025, suffering a semifinal exit to Harimoto in the WTT Star Contender in Doha in January and an early round-of-32 elimination against China’s Wang Chuqin at the WTT Champions Chongqing 2025. The 36-year-old will aim to improve his performance in Chennai, where he makes history as the first African player ever to reach the world’s top 10 rankings.
In the women’s category, Egypt’s Hana Goda maintained her position as Africa’s top-ranked female player, moving up one place to 26th globally. Her compatriot Dina Meshref remains the continent’s second-best female player at 33rd position.
China continues to dominate the global rankings, with Lin Shidong and Wang Chuqin holding the top two positions in the men’s category, while Japan’s Tomokazu Harimoto moved up to third place after his semifinal finish in Chongqing.
China’s Sun Yingsha maintains her top spot in the women’s rankings after successfully defending her WTT Champions Chongqing title.
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