Thursday morning brought a different kind of pressure to Aero Beach in Entebbe. After two days of group-stage competition, there was no room left for teams to rely on a second opportunity. The Team Relay had reached the knockout stage, and for Algeria, Burkina Faso, Rwanda and Mauritius, the opening matches of Day 2 would decide who continued towards the title and who saw their campaign come to an end.
The first quarter-final on Court 1 produced a closely fought contest between Algeria and Burkina Faso. Neither side was willing to give much away in the opening stages, with Burkina Faso taking a narrow 15–14 lead in the first Team 2 match. Algeria responded as the tie progressed, but Burkina Faso continued to find a way to stay in front. Their advantage grew to 45–38 before the final stage, leaving Algeria with a difficult task as they tried to keep their Team Relay hopes alive.
Burkina Faso held their nerve through the final stage and secured a 60–54 victory. It was a hard-earned result that sent them through to the semi-finals and ended Algeria’s run in the Team Relay competition. Having stayed within touching distance for much of the tie, Algeria could take little comfort from the final score as Burkina Faso proved more consistent when it mattered most.
On the other court, Mauritius faced Rwanda with the same objective: securing a place in the semi-finals. Mauritius, however, quickly established control of the tie. They opened with a 15–8 victory in the men’s doubles before extending their lead to 30–14. Rwanda attempted to respond, but Mauritius continued to apply pressure and moved further ahead at 45–20.
With the advantage firmly in their hands, Mauritius completed a 60–28 victory and booked their place in the next round. The result marked a convincing performance from the Mauritian side, who maintained their momentum throughout the four stages and gave Rwanda little opportunity to close the gap.
By the end of the morning session, the quarter-final picture was settled. Burkina Faso and Mauritius had survived their respective battles and moved one step closer to the Team Relay final, while Algeria and Rwanda were left to reflect on the end of their campaigns.
But the two winners would not have much time to recover. The semi-finals were already waiting, bringing two of the tournament’s strongest sides, Egypt and Benin, into the picture. With a place in the Team Relay final at stake, the intensity at Aero Beach was only set to increase as the competition moved into its decisive stages.
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