Egypt may not be among the most heralded teams in this weekend’s FIBA 3×3 World Cup Qualifier, and their route to qualification looks steep. But between Soraya Mohamed and Mido Taha, they may have the two most entertaining players in the tournament – always capable of bringing some unpredictability and flair, and perhaps some upsets for their team.

By Wong Chin  Yi

Egypt are not the obvious story coming into this weekend. On the men’s side, they share the field with New Zealand and Italy. On the women’s side, they are up against Hungary and Lithuania. In a six-team qualifier with almost no margin for error, these are not easy places to be. Egypt do not come in with the same billing as some of the top seeds, and they are not the team most people will mention first when talking about likely qualifiers. Yet it is likely that they will come away from this weekend with some new-found fans, who will hope that the team secures not just a ticket to the FIBA 3×3 World Cup 2026 in Poland, but also finds a way to snag a return ticket for next year’s edition of the event to be held right here in Singapore.

Because while Egypt may lack the loudest profile, they do not lack personality. In Soraya Mohamed and Mido Taha, they have two players capable of giving this tournament what all short, high-pressure events need: unpredictability, flair and the sense that one mercurial moment can break a game away from its script.

Soraya: still the Queen of Egypt

On the women’s side, Soraya remains the clearest face of Egypt’s 3×3 identity, or even its basketball identity at large. She was part of Egypt’s FIBA 3×3 Africa Cup-winning teams in 2019 and 2022, while collecting accolades such as MVP in 2019. She has carried that status for years now, not simply as a productive player, but as one of the most recognisable figures in women’s 3×3.

 

What makes Soraya so compelling is not just that she produces. It is the way she does it. There is creativity in her game, a lot of swagger, and the kind of confidence that makes a player feel expressive and unique. Above all else, her passing stands out – she sees passing windows develop before just about anyone else, delivers the ball with imagination and a touch of flair, and has a feel for the kind of quick, sharp connection play that can open up a 3×3 game before the defence has time to settle. In a format as compressed as 3×3, where there is little time to settle into the play, fewer players and even less space to work with, players like that stand out even more. As a gifted playmaker, Soraya Mohamed can change the feel of a game with just a few touches.

That matters even more for an underdog. Teams like Egypt often cannot rely on simply being steadier, deeper or stronger than the opposition. They need a player who can make a game unstable, someone who can create difficult points not just for herself, but also for her teammates. As they head into this weekend, Egypt will be counting on her unpredictable game to swing momentum and make a fancied opponent uncomfortable.

Mido Taha, the men’s spark

For the men of Egypt, Mido Taha brings a similar kind of threat, but in a different shape. He was part of Egypt’s FIBA 3×3 Africa Cup-winning side in 2023, and a year earlier he made the Team of the Tournament after finishing as Egypt’s top scorer during their run to silver. More recently, he was a key part of Egypt’s podium finish at the 2025 edition of the same event.

 

Taha’s appeal is obvious enough once the ball is in his hands. The nickname ‘Cairo Irving’ fits so well because his game has that same sense of smoothness and invention. His handle is polished, he gets to awkward angles without seeming rushed, and he has a gift for creative finishing once he gets into the paint. The no-look dimes fly easily out of his hands too, but the real signature is the way he can manufacture a bucket from a possession that does not look especially promising at first. He gives Egypt’s men a bit of voltage, the sense that a game can suddenly tilt if he gets going.

In qualifiers this short, that sort of player is a danger against just about any opponent. Once Taha catches fire, he can turn a tight contest into a scoring run for his team. Egypt’s path is steep, but that is exactly why unpredictable players like Soraya and Taha are so important. When you are not expected to control the whole tournament, sometimes all you need is one stretch of chaos to topple the hierarchy.

The road ahead

That is why Egypt make such an appealing underdog story. They are not entering Singapore with the strongest seeding, the clearest path or the loudest headlines. But they do have two players who can make people stop and watch in any given game. Soraya Mohamed and Mido Taha give Egypt something every dangerous outsider needs: not just quality, but force of character. Not just production, but presence.

Egypt still has to do the hardest part, which is win. But if there is a lower-profile team in this qualifier capable of making the weekend feel more alive, more unstable and more fun, it is probably this one. With Soraya on the women’s side and Taha on the men’s, Egypt have a chance to be remembered not as outsiders, but as the side that brought the most spark.