Kenya eliminated Australia with a thrilling quarter-final win in the opening round of the international rugby sevens tour on the Gold Coast on Sunday.

The Africans set-up a semi-final with New Zealand after Dennis Ombachi outpaced Australia captain Ed Jenkins to score after the siren and seal a 21-14 victory.

The result stunned Australia, who went into the match full of confidence after winning all three of their pool matches on Saturday including a thrilling 15-14 win over defending champions Fiji.

Matt Lucas opened the scoring for Australia, crossing midway through the first half for an early 7-0 lead but Oscar Ouma ensured Kenya recovered for a 7-7 halftime score when he sprinted the length of the field to score just before the break.

Australia’s seven-point lead was re-established when Pama Fou stepped his way through the Kenyan defence to score but Collins Injera instantly hit back.

That made the score 14-all with Ombachi’s dramatic clincher ensuring Australia’s decade-long wait for a sevens tournament title on home soil will continue.

Kenya meet last year’s runners-up New Zealand after the Kiwis battled past Argentina in their quarter-final.

A second-half try to captain DJ Forbes gave the Kiwis a 12-7 win against the plucky South Americans.

The other semi-final will be between in-form South Africa and Fiji after South Africa beat France and Fiji eliminated fellow Pacific islanders Samoa in the other quarter-finals.

Australia meanwhile, drop into the Plate competition and will take on Argentina for a spot in the Plate decider from 3.36pm AEST.