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Gavin Rumgay worked his way to the last four in Lagos Fair City table tennis star Gavin Rumgay is reflecting on the “biggest”performance of his career.
The Perth professional picked up a bronze medal at the ITTF Challenge Seamaster Nigeria Open in Lagos.
Rumgay, who was seeded nine for the tournament, defeated Thailand’s Padasak Tanviriyavechakul in a thrilling quarter-final.
The mammoth contest ebbed and flowed but the Scot held his nerve to book a last four spot with a 10-12, 11-7, 11-9, 8-11, 11-8, 5-11, 11-9 win.
But Rumgay was then denied a place in the final after losing to Frenchman Antoine Hachard.
“It’s the biggest performance of my career to date,”Rumgay told the Perthshire Advertiser. “Defeating four top professional players en route to the semi-final was huge for my confidence.
“The difference was having the master tactician and coach Miles Ross in my corner. He was brilliant in every match and kept my intensity and focus very high.”
Rumgay admits Hachard was a deserving winner of the semi-final match at an event where Nigerian Quadri Aruna took the title.
“I had practiced with Hachard in France before,”said Rumgay.“I think that helped him get used to my unique style. He played the big points better than me and thoroughly deserved the win.
“I played in the Australian world tour two weeks ago and almost had a huge win over German national team player Ricardo Walther. I think that result gave me a confidence boost ahead of the Nigerian trip.”
Rumgay broke the all-time Scottish record by winning his 13th national men’s singles title earlier this year. His sights are set on breaking into the world’s top 100. “My career goal has always been to reach the world’s top 100,” Rumgay concluded. “This result should see me reach the top 130. We are getting there.”