12th March, 2015
Taiwo Adelu
Nigerian players taking part in the ongoing International Table Tennis Federation, ITTF, Lagos World Tour have been described as fighters whose future is bright in the ping pong game.
This was the submission of a Russian player, Irina Ermakova after she had it tough in a game against Akoke Ojomu of Nigeria in the Round of 16 of the women’s singles played yesterday at the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Surulere, Lagos. Ermakova beat Ojomu 4-1.
“It was not easy winning the match because Nigerian players are strong and not easy to play against. They are fighters and this most times makes any match against them very hard. But I had to be at my best to win the match. My next match will be difficult against the Chinese from Portugal,” the Russian star said.
To Ramadan Sayed, an Egyptian, playing against Olajide Omotayo in the round of 32 of men’s singles was not easy at all.
Though he beat the Nigerian player, he said: “We both played very good and it was indeed a very tough match for me, but I had to be more aggressive on table and fight for every point. I think I was more focused throughout the match even when the match was 3-3 major. I am happy winning as I look forward to other matches.”
Egypt’s Magdy Shady said after beating Nurudeen Hassan 3-1 in the round of 16 of the men’s U-21 that “it was not an easy match because I knew nothing about my opponent. I was a bit nervous in the first two games. But my coach told me to relax and play my game. This really helped me to get back into the game. I did not notice my opponent at all because he played from the preliminary to make it to the main draw. He is a good player and I am so excited that I won.”