Obisanya carpets NSC over neglect of table tennis, praises Quadri

Former National Table Tennis coach, Babatunde Obisanya, has described the latest ranking of Aruna Quadri and the feat he achieved at the just concluded International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) World Team Championships in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, as good for the country.

Quadri recently regained top 30 in the world in the latest ranking by ITTF from the 37th place he was in February, while Egypt’s Omar Assar dropped to 36, following the defeat he suffered in hands of Quadri at the ITTF Africa Top 16 Cup in Sudan.

Speaking with The Guardian, Obisanya, said: “I can tell you as a technical person that what the boy has achieved is a good omen for the country. This is what Aruna Quadri should have achieved four or five years ago. But now that he has been able to find his feet, all necessary support should be given to him to make sure that Nigeria presents a formidable team at the Rio Olympics. And like I keep saying, without the necessary back up, both financial and technical, I don’t expect us to achieve much in Rio.

“Now that we have a kind of leverage, something we can build upon, it is only the sports commission through its federation that can do something to double their effort in making sure that the necessary assistance is given to table tennis,” Obisanya said.

He however expressed his displeasure over the attitude of the National Sports Commission.

“My grudge with the NSC is that no single assistance was given to these boys that went to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Must they (NSC) always wait for people to achieve something before they share from their glory?”