[2] He started playing table tennis when he was in Presbyterian Senior High School, Osu as a student and junior national champion.

[7] During the commonwealth games in Gold Coast, Australia Derek has made the men's single match where he beat Sierra Leone's Emmanuel Gboyah in four straight sets, (11–5, 11–1, 11–4, 11–5).

[8] He also represented Ghana at the 2019 African Games in Rabat Morocco and he was appointed the general team captain[9] and was the flag bearer during the opening ceremony.

[16][17] Derek has won six times the Sports Writers Association of Ghana (SWAG) National Best Table Tennis Player Award Winner in 2010, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2018 respectively.

[22] Derek who is currently based in the UK in June 2023 donated table tennis kits and sporting equipments to some selected schools and foundations in Accra, Ghana.