Africa’s table tennis stars, Quadri Aruna of Nigeria and Hana Goda of Egypt, will begin their 2026 seasons on Thursday, January 8, at the WTT Champions Doha in Qatar, as they look to bounce back from the disappointment of missing the end-of-year WTT Cup Finals.
For the first time since the WTT Cup Finals were introduced in 2021, no African player featured in the 2025 edition. Aruna and fellow Egyptian Omar Assar failed to qualify based on their overall performances during the season, ending a streak that had consistently seen Africa represented at the elite tournament.
Aruna, Africa’s highest-ranked male player at the close of 2025 and the continent’s most consistent presence at the Cup Finals, narrowly missed out after failing to break into the top 16. Goda, Africa’s top-ranked female player, also fell short of the top-16 cutoff required to secure a place in the prestigious and lucrative competition.
Both players will now aim to make a strong statement at the Lusail Sports Arena, where they face formidable Asian opponents in the opening round of the singles event. Aruna is set to renew his rivalry with China’s Liang Jingkun, while Goda faces a stern test against former world number one Zhu Yuling of Macao.
The meeting between Aruna and Jingkun will be their third career encounter. Aruna famously defeated the Chinese star at the 2021 WTT Cup Finals, while Jingkun claimed a dominant 4–1 win at their first meeting at the 2018 Korean Open. Thursday’s clash offers both players the chance to gain the upper hand in their head-to-head record.
For Goda, the match against Yuling marks their first-ever international meeting. The young Egyptian will be hoping to cause an upset in a tournament that offers vital ranking points and a share of the $500,000 prize purse.
Meanwhile, Omar Assar endured a difficult start to his 2026 campaign. His new partnership with Austrian coach and former world champion Werner Schlager began with a setback, as Assar lost 3–1 to Japan’s Shunsuke Togami after taking the opening game in their first-round men’s singles match. Despite the loss, Assar has expressed determination to challenge the world’s best this season.
The WTT Champions Doha also carries added significance as it marks the first time the Qatari capital is hosting the purple-tier WTT Champions event, adding prestige to the season-opening tournament.
