Nigeria, May 15 -- As the 2025 ITTF World Table Tennis Championships serve off in Doha, Qatar, all eyes from Africa, and especially Nigeria; will be on Quadri Aruna.

The tournament, scheduled from 17 to 25 May, marks a return to the Middle East 21 years after Doha first hosted the global event in 2004, and for Nigeria's Aruna, it's a chance to etch his name even deeper into the sport's history.

Aruna, Africa's highest-ranked male player and the first from the continent to reach the World Championships quarterfinals, will kickstart his campaign in the Men's Singles against Brazil's Victor Ishiy.

It's a rematch of their gripping 2021 encounter in Houston, where Aruna prevailed 4-2.

This time, the stakes are higher, the stage is grander,...