Rank outsiders Egypt reached the Basketball World Cup for the first time since 1994 after beating Senegal in the semi-final of the FIBA Africa Championship on Friday.

The Pharaohs beat Senegal 70-63 to defy the odds and book their place in next year’s World Cup in Spain after reaching the Africa Championship final. Egypt made the last of their five World Cup appearances in 1994 in Canada.

They made a poor start to the Africa Championship that saw them lose to hosts Ivory Coast, Senegal and Algeria in their three group-stage games.

However, they remarkably recovered from the disappointing start to record a surprising victory over title holders Tunisia before beating Cape Verde in an exciting last-eight game. They will face either Angola or the Ivory Coast in the tournament’s final.

Egypt were the dominant force in Africa in the 1960s and 70s but suffered a dip in form in the subsequent decades. They finished 11th at the previous edition of the Africa Championship in Madagascar in 2011.

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