TheCable

Aruna Quadri, the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) Star Player of the year, has declared that winning the award has placed much responsibility on him to further improve his game.

The world’s number 30 ranked player, who beat world number one China’s Xu Xin and his compatriot, Fan Zhendong as well as Portugal’s Marcos Freitas to the gong, now says that the award will put enormous pressure on him to work harder.

“The awards are like a challenge to me because, from what I have noticed, more pressure will be on me,” he told NAN.

“I pray for courage and grace to be able to respond to this pressure; I hope God assists me. I will have to add two hours to my daily practice; now I practise for six hours and undergo physical fitness exercise twice in a week.

“It was really great and exciting winning the awards. I was the happiest player in that building.The mission seemed impossible as I was in competition with established superstars. Impossibility turned to possibility through my miraculous God. God is great. We all deserved it but I was just the luckiest one,” he said.

Quadri urged other African players to also work hard and believe in themselves.

“They have to build more self-confidence and self-determination. I urge them to work harder because hard work really accounted for my successes in 2014,” the African champion said.