African Games 2023: Heartbreak As All of Ghana’s Table Tennis Contingent Suffer Early Elimination

• Team Ghana have suffered an early setback at the African Games
• The Table Tennis contingent, made up of 10 players, all crashed out
• The multisport event hosts will now concentrate on other disciplines

Ghana, the host nation of the 13th edition of the African Games, encountered a significant setback in their pursuit of medals at the prestigious multisport event, particularly in the discipline of table tennis.

Referred to as the Black Loopers, Ghana's table tennis contingent, comprising 10 skilled athletes, faced disappointment as they were unable to progress beyond the round of 16 stage of the ongoing championship held in Accra.

Despite the presence of tenacious players, including five male and five female competitors, such as the youngest member of the Ghanaian contingent for the African Games, Israel Aklie, none managed to secure advancement to the latter stages of the competition.

Heavyweight broadcaster Robert Marawa, the voice of sports media in South Africa, celebrates 49th birthday

Boxing

How Ghana performed in Table Tennis

Female Singles category

Cynthia Kwabi, an enduring presence in the tournament, advanced to the round of 16 after triumphing over Kenya's nine-year-old Nafula Sifa Favour.

However, her journey was halted by Hana Goda, Africa's top-ranked female table tennis player from Egypt, who dominated Cynthia with a 3-0 victory in the Round of 16, per GTV Sports+ on X.

Eva Adom-Amankwaa also reached the last-16 stage after defeating Angola's Albino Isabel, but her aspirations were dashed by Hanitra Karen Raharimanana from Madagascar, who narrowly edged her out with a 3-2 win.

In another match, Cameroon's Hanffou Sosah secured victory over her Ghanaian counterpart Bernice Borquaye, advancing to the round of 16 stage.

Similarly, Celia Danso faced a similar outcome, suffering a 3-0 defeat to Algeria's Nasri Melissa.

Men Singles Category

According to GHSports News, Emmanuel Commey progressed to the round of 32 in the men’s singles competition after securing a 3-1 victory (11-3, 11-8, 10-12, and 11-3) over Joseph Sebatindira of Uganda and another 3-1 win (11-2, 11-8, 13-15, and 11-1) against Bertin Mingashanga of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Ranking the Greatest Nigerians to Play in Ligue 1, From Jay Jay Okocha to Vincent Enyeama

Football

However, Congo's Idowu Saheed defeated Commey 3-0 to advance to the last-16.

Meanwhile, Ghana's Israel Aklie, the recipient of the 2022 Sports Writers Association of Ghana (SWAG) award for the most exciting table tennis player, was eliminated from the men's table tennis singles event by Nigeria's sensational Kuti Mathew.

The rest of Team Ghana's Table Tennis contingent, including Bernard Joe Sam, Samuel Akayade, and Ernest Mawutor Quarcoo, were all eliminated from the competition.

African Games football competition

Following a successful AFCON, the men's football tournament will now showcase nine U/20 teams. These teams are divided into two groups, with one group comprising four teams and the other featuring five teams, Sports Brief reported.

In Group A, the hosts will compete alongside Gambia, Benin, and Congo. Meanwhile, Group B will see Nigeria, the favourites, facing off against South Sudan, Senegal, Uganda, and Tunisia.

All of Nigeria's group matches are set to kick off at 20:00, while all Group B matches will take place at the University of Ghana Sports Stadium.

The top two teams from each group will advance to the semi-finals, scheduled for March 19. The final match is slated to take place on March 22 at the Accra Sports Stadium.