It’s tough beating Nigerian women in final, admits Egypt’s Meshref

Despite their 3-1 win over Nigeria in the final of the women event of the 2018 ITTF African Championships in Mauritius on Wednesday, Egypt’s Dina Meshref has admitted that it was a tough encounter, adding that they were lucky to have emerged victorious.

Meshref who recorded victory against Edem Offiong and Olufunke Oshonaike said: “It was not an easy match for us winning against Nigeria because they are an experienced side and I think we were just lucky to have escaped particularly the third game won by Yousra Helmy against Janet Effiom. We cannot look down on Nigeria because they have always been our rival with quality and experienced players in their fold.”

With the qualification for the 2019 ITTF World Team Cup in Japan, Meshref would cherish the title for a long time to come. “I think retaining the title was very important to us before the match and we were eager to do that in Mauritius because this competition holds every two years so for us, it was vital to win.”

“We are also excited playing in the World Team Cup again and I hope we can represent Africa very well this time having featured in previous editions of the competition,” she added.