Tanzania rallied to a 3-1 victory over Burundi in a thrilling encounter in the 2014 women’s World Championship qualifiers at the Moi International Sports Centre Kasarani on Saturday.
On the second day of the championship Tanzania came up against neighbouring rivals Burundi in a tantalizing match as both teams were on the losing end on Friday when they played against Egypt and Kenya respectively.
With both teams facing a must-win situation, it was Tanzania that emerged victorious after overpowering the Burundians 25-16, 18-25, 25-187, 25-23. The victors started their intentions in the first set with a calm 25-16 win but relaxed their guards allowing Burundi to win the second set 25-18.
However, sensing danger, the Tanzanians recovered in the final two quarters pinning their opponents and capitalizing on easy errors thus pushing the match into the fourth set, where Tanzania walked away with a narrow victory of 25-23.
While speaking after the loss, Charles Niyongabo, the Burundian Coach, praised the Tanzania team crediting their win to their good mobility on the court and their physical endurance. “The match was quite competitive and we lost because of poor reception and bad defence.
I would like to congratulate Tanzania for their quick mobility”. On the other hand, the Tanzanians were ecstatic with their victory as it was their first win of the tournament whose top two finishers will book a ticket to the next stage of the championships qualifiers.
“We are very happy with our performance today as we didn’t expect much; however, through our strong defence we nailed it. We are trying to be on our best shape as we face our Kenyan counter parts tomorrow” said Esther Noel, Tanzanian captain.
Meanwhile, the much anticipated match between Uganda and Egypt took the centre stage on Saturday evening with the Pharaos thrashing Uganda 3-0 (25-12,25-15,25-12). This was the first match for Uganda as their opener match against Ethiopia that was scheduled to take place on Friday was cancelled as Ethiopia failed to show up for the qualifiers.
Ugandans had an ample time for practising at the Moi international sports centre gymnasium and also were fresh as they had not taken part in any other match prior to the Pharaoh’s face off.They (Uganda) however still have a chance to redeem themselves as they play Burundi on Sunday afternoon.
The tournament kicked off on Friday afternoon with a match opener between Egypt and Tanzania at the Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani. During the three set match, Egypt enjoyed an easy day while washing Tanzania 3-0 (25-9, 25-12, 25-11).
Speaking after the game, Tanzanian Coach Lamek Mashindano said their defeat was due to fatigue. “We arrived yesterday and we headed straight to the volleyball court for training so we didn’t have enough time for resting.
However we are looking forward to recover the loss in Tuesday’s match against Burundi” he was quoted as saying by michezoafrika.com. Tanzania was due to play hosts Kenya in their next match on last evening at Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani while Burundi was facing Uganda in the afternoon.
