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AFRICA- Africa's leading table tennis players have secured their spots in the 2025 ITTF World Cup by reaching the semifinals of the ongoing ITTF Africa Cup in Tunis, Tunisia.
Among the notable athletes are Quadri Aruna, Omar Assar, Hana Goda, Dina Meshref, Mariam Alhodaby, and Fatimo Bello. Hana Goda from Egypt was the first to earn her place with an impressive 4-1 victory against Tunisia's Maram Zoghlami. Following her success, Nigeria's Fatimo Bello also achieved a 4-1 win over the young Tunisian player, Ela Saidi.
Omar Assar, a five-time Africa Cup champion, faced a challenging match against Algeria's Mehdi Bouloussa in the men’s quarterfinals but managed to secure a 4-2 victory to qualify for the World Cup. Abdel-Kader Salifou from Benin Republic earned his first ITTF World Cup qualification by defeating Egypt’s Mohamed El-Beiali 4-1 in the quarterfinals.
Meanwhile, the nine-time African Cup champion, Dina Meshref from Egypt, convincingly defeated Nigeria’s Aminat Fashola to make her return to the ITTF World Cup.
Mariam Alhodaby contributed a third qualification for Egypt with a dominant 4-0 victory over Algeria’s Lynda Logrhaibi, confirming her slot in Macao, China. Nigeria’s Quadri Aruna also had an easy ride, defeating Cote d’Ivoire’s Oba Oba Kizito 4-0 to make a return as a familiar competitor at the ITTF World Cup. Cameroon’s Ylane Batix also claimed his first ITTF World Cup ticket by beating Madagascar’s Antoine Razafinarivo 4-2 in the quarterfinals.
In the semifinals, Aruna will compete against Batix, while Assar faces Salifou in the men's singles. For the women's singles, Goda will take on Bello, and Meshref will challenge Alhodaby as they vie for the podium in Tunis.
