Suffren was involved in a happenstance battle with a British fleet at Porto Praya in the Cape Verde Islands in April.

In October, he left reinforcement troops at the Dutch-controlled Cape of Good Hope to assist with colonial defense.

Suffren added some ships to his fleet and sailed on to the Île de France (present-day Mauritius), arriving at Port Louis in December.

Detaching one corvette to protect the convoy and detailing another to watch the British fleet, Suffren attempted to draw Hughes away.

Suffren summoned his captains for council and chastised those who had chosen to stay out of the battle before following the troop convoy to Porto Novo.

There the French army had landed, and Suffren met with the Mysorean ruler Hyder Ali to plan strategy.