WTT Star Contender Doha: Aruna battles Harimoto in semi- final

Nigeria’s Quadri Aruna, on Friday continued impressive run at the 2025 WTT Star Contender Doha by defeating Korea’s Park Ganghyeon in an explosive quarter match at the Lusail Arena.

With the win,Aruna has now set up a semifinal clash against the tournament’s No. 1 seed, Tomokazu Harimoto of Japan.

Earlier on Friday(January 10)the second highest-ranked African player in the world avenged his previous losses to Spain’s Alvaro Robles with a hard-fought 3-2 victory.

A statement issued by the Africa Table Tennis Federation (ATTF), on Friday, said that in the quarterfinal match, Aruna showcased a dominant performance against the Korean qualifier, who had previously eliminated German top seed Patrick Franciska in the second round.

Aruna took control from the start, winning the first game 11-9 and the second game 11-8.

Although Park fought back to win the third game 11-4, Aruna regained his composure and clinched the fourth game 11-9, securing a 3-1 victory and advancing to the semifinals.

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Aruna remains the only male African player to reach the semifinal stage of the WTT Star Contender, replicating his achievement from the 2022 edition.

Aruna’s last encounter with his semi-final opponent at the WTT Champions Frankfurt in Germany, ended in Aruna’s favour,

Harimoto will be seeking revenge when they meet on Saturday.