by crossriverwatch admin
It was a very bad outing for the Nigerian female table tennis team at the ongoing Glasgow, Scotland Commonwealth games as all of them crashed out without reaching the knockout stages.
Even the reigning national and continental champion, Cross River born Edem Offiong who promised to win gold, was knocked out in the main draw.
Edem had boasted before departing for the games that she would win gold but she was bundled out of the competition in the singles by Joanna Drinkhall in the round of 64 (main draw).
The most disappointing aspect of the defeat was that the game ended in a 4-0 bashing of the African champion by the English lady.
The Nigerian female team’s last game was in the women’s doubles when the pair of Funke Oshonaike and Cecilia Otu-Akpan were beaten 3-0 by Malaysia’s duo of Lee Beh and Sock Ng.
Otu-Akpan suffered the same fate at the hands of Singapore’s Taiwei Feng; also in the main draw.
However, Ganiat Ogundele, who also made it to the main draw after recording 100 per cent in the preliminary round, fought hard against India’s Shamini Kumaresan. Despite her efforts, she surrendered to the Indian in the seventh game to exit the competition at 4-3.
What should have been a consolation for the female team also disappeared into thin air, as the duo of Oshonaike and Aruna Quadri, was booted out by Singapore in the mixed doubles.
The women’s team failed to make it beyond the knockout stage in the team event, where their male counterparts clinched bronze.
A disappointed President of the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation, NTTF, Wahid Oshodi, said he was not surprised with the result of the female team. He promised that attention would now be given to young players who would be nurtured to take over the team in future tournaments.
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