Quadri most famous African tennis player in Japan – Japanese Editor

The exploits of Nigeria’s Aruna Quadri are not only felt in Nigeria and Africa but it is also inspiring Japanese athletes.

According to the Editor of Japan-based World Table Tennis Magazine, Taro Yanagisawa, the 2014 ITTF Star Player has become a household name among upcoming table tennis players in the Asian country.

The editor told NationSport on Tuesday that for now, aside Yaya Toure who is famous among football lovers, Aruna Quadri remains an inspiration in Japan.

“I must tell you that Aruna Quadri is very famous in Japan because of his fantastic style of play coupled with the superb forehand. Quadri’s carriage on table and his sportsmanship spirit has now become an inspiration to a lot of Japanese table tennis players.

“They like watching his matches and some of them see him as their role model. Particularly when he defeated Kenta Matsudera at the 2014 ITTF World Cup in Germany and from what we have been seeing him playing in various ITTF World Tours, his game has continued to improve,” Yanagisawa said.

He added: “If we are considering African athletes that are popular in Japan, Aruna Quadri is one of them. Apart from Didier Drogba and Yaya Toure who are very popular in Japan, Aruna Quadri is listed among the famous African stars.

“Since taking part in the World Cup, he has continued to make headlines across the globe with his attractive style of play coupled with his inspiring forehand which has now become a reference point globally. I must tell you that Aruna Quadri is a global brand and a good image for Africa.”

Yanagisawa who is in Kuala Lumpur covering the ongoing ITTF World Team Championship believes the performance of the Nigerian team so far in the tournament is a confirmation of the quality of the players.

“I am not surprised with the performance of Nigeria so far having won all their group matches to top the group, I think they are now in better position to get promotion to the Championships Division,” he opined.