April 21, 2021

Nigeria’s teenage table tennis sensation Musa Mustapha has been ranked the world’s best player in the boys’ U-11 by the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF).

Mustapha becomes the second African to clinch the number one spot in the world after Hana Goda was named the best in the U-15 girls category last year.

The youngster was part of the Nigerian team that won the 2019 ITTF Junior Circuit in Ghana and the world table tennis ruling body has also been monitoring the player in the last three years after he made his senior debut at the 2018 Nigeria Open in Lagos.

In the ranking list released by ITTF, Mustapha with 128 points is number one U-11 while he is also ranked 17th in the U-13 category while his brother Mustapha was rated 18th in the same cadre.

The Al-Faizun Junior Academy student is expected to be part of the World Youth Series taking place later this year in Cote d’Ivoire and Ghana.

National junior champion, Taiwo Matti is also ranked 12th in the U-17s and 64th in the U-19s.

According to ITTF, the newly formed WTT Youth Series replaces the ITTF World Junior Circuit and now complemented by the new ranking regulations, being the first step in the whole of the sport pathway that will drive today’s most promising young talent towards the pinnacle of the sport.

Portugal will host the first-ever WTT Youth Series event, with the inaugural WTT Youth Contender to take place in Vila Real from Tuesday 11 to Monday 17th May. It will be the first youth event to be staged since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.