Tennis: Aruna To Battle Toriola After Winning Amiens Debut

Nigeria’s table tennis stars Quadri Aruna and Segun Toriola will face each other next Tuesday as the French Pro B League returns for its second round, after both Nigerians enjoyed winning starts to the season.

Aruna made an impressive Amiens debut on Tuesday, battling to a 3-2 victory over Lille before defeating Iran’s Hossein Hodaei 3-1 to help his new club open its campaign on a winning note.

The Nigerian star will now turn his attention to a familiar opponent when Amiens travel to Nantes on September 29.

Toriola, who combines his playing role with coaching duties at Nantes, also began the campaign with victory as his side defeated Frejus AMSL 3-1.

The Nigerian veteran was joined in Nantes’ winning effort by Egyptian youngster Youssef Abdelaziz and Greek veteran Panagiotis Gionis.

The Aruna v Toriola clash will be one of several African battles to watch in the league, which has already seen strong contributions from players from across the continent.

Algeria’s Mehdi Bouloussa was instrumental in Courbevoie STT’s 3-2 victory over Compiégnois TT, while compatriot Stephane Ouaiche helped Caen TTC make the strongest start of the opening round with a 3-0 win over Miramas AS.

Maheidine Bella also contributed a point for Proville ASL in their 1-3 defeat to Pontoise-Cergy AS.

For Nigeria, Olajide Omotayo and Taiwo Mati also began the campaign with a team victory, although neither featured as Le Havre ATT defeated Boulogne Billancourt AC 3-1.

Benin Republic’s Salifou Abdel-Kader, meanwhile, was not selected for Compiégnois TT, who suffered a 0-3 defeat to Bouloussa’s Courbevoie.

With Caen leading the early standings and Amiens occupying third place, Aruna’s meeting with Toriola promises to be a major attraction in the second round.

Aruna will be hoping his impressive Amiens debut can provide the momentum for