Wednesday

Semifinals

Rwanda vs Egypt (4pm)

Cameroon vs Kenya (6pm)

Rwanda women’s national volleyball team head coach Paulo De Tarso is aware of the threat that pre-tournament favourites Egypt may pose on his side but he trusts his ladies will be ready to face the challenge when the two sides face off in the semifinals of the Women’s African Nations Volleyball Championship at Yaoundé Multipurpose Sports Complex on Thursday.

Rwanda escaped early Algerian dominance in the first two sets to win a thrilling tiebreaker 3-2 (23-25, 25-15, 25-18, 22-19 and 16-14) in the quarterfinals of the tournament on Tuesday afternoon and set a semifinal date with Egypt.

It took De Tarso’s side 123 minutes to overcome Algeria in a grueling five-set thriller. And now, they have another tough side in Egypt to beat if they are to reach what would be their first final in the country’s history.

"Our plans are going well so far and I believe we are ready for the semifinal match against Egypt. We want to win this game and we are ready for the challenge. It is going to be a tough one, but it is possible," the Brazilian coach told Times Sport in a post-match interview.

De Traso is aware that, "Egypt, as African giants, are the favourites.” But, he said, "We are going to the match with a positive mind believing that we can beat them. My target is to finish as high as possible."

" We need to be ready physically, tactically and mentally because we are going to face a top team in Egypt," he added.

Rwanda will have to be careful about Egyptian star receiver attacker Nada Meawad who has been a key player for the Northern African giants during the tournament.

The coach will also need to make good use of his tight blockers like they did when they came from two sets down against Algeria in the tiebreaker to settle the victory.

In another semifinal, Kenya will face Cameroon in what promises to be a rematch of the final match of the 2021 tournament edition held in Kigali. Cameroon went on to win the championship after beating Kenya 3-1 sets (25-21, 25-23, 15 -25 and 25-23).