African Hopes Narrow After Aruna’s Exit At Muscat Contender

African Hopes Narrow After Aruna’s Exit At Muscat Contender

By Admin 

Nigeria’s Quadri Aruna suffered an early exit at the 2025 Muscat Contender on Thursday, falling 3–2 to Romania’s Eduard Ionescu in a thrilling round of 32 contest at the Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex, BSNSports.com.ng reports.

Seeded ninth, Aruna received a bye into the round of 32 and entered the match as the favourite. However, the world No. 27 was unable to overcome 21-year-old Ionescu, ranked 44th globally, who showed impressive poise in the decisive fifth game to seal a 12–10 victory.

The match, lasting 32 minutes and 27 seconds, was tightly contested, with momentum shifting repeatedly. Aruna recovered from an opening-game setback to win the second and third games 11–4 and 11–8, but Ionescu rallied to claim the fourth game 11–9 before edging the Nigerian in a tense final game.

Despite winning more total points (47–46) and matching Ionescu almost exactly in service statistics—both secured 23 points on their opponent’s serve Aruna faltered in crucial moments. He recorded a seven-point streak at one stage, but Ionescu’s resilience proved decisive.

Aruna’s defeat leaves Egypt’s Omar Assar as the only African remaining in the men’s singles draw. The 34-year-old advanced to the round of 16 after defeating South Korea’s Gyuhyeon Park and will next face top seed and world No. 7, France’s Félix Lebrun.

Ionescu moved on to face fifth seed Woojin Jang on Friday as he seeks to extend his impressive run at the $300,000 event, where a round-of-16 victory would secure 600 ranking points.

Aruna’s round of 32 finish earns him $17,000 and 25 ranking points—a setback, but one that still keeps him well positioned for upcoming competitions.