India cruise through CS:GO South Asia qualifiers

India’s Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) team showcased a dominant combination of high-quality gameplay and supreme skills to overpower Pakistan and Nepal on the final day of the South Asia qualifiers to qualify for the Asian qualifiers, set to be held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from July 10–17, 2023. 

Comprising team captain Harsh f1redup Jain, Jaspreet SpawN Singh, Sadab SK wow^ Khan, Piyush clouda Kalwania, Nikhil N1kace Kathe and substitute Omkar omkar09 Thube, the Indian team began the qualifiers with a bang by putting up comprehensive performance to take down Bangladesh with a 16-9 win and Sri Lanka with a 16-8 victory on the opening day. They then continued their momentum on the second day and recorded a 16-5 win against Nepal, followed by a 16-6 triumph against Pakistan.

Team captain Harsh Jain was instrumental in India’s monumental victories throughout the qualifiers as he led his side by example, notably notching a total of 29 kills against Bangladesh and 31 kills against Nepal.

The team had secured their maiden qualification for the South Asia qualifiers by triumphing over Team Wicked Gaming in the finals of the 2023 National Esports Championships, conducted by the Esports Federation of India (ESFI) earlier this year. They will now battle it out against top CS:GO teams from Uzbekistan, Indonesia, Vietnam, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia to qualify for the 15th World Esports Championships in Ia?i, scheduled to be held from August 24 to September 4, 2023.

Harsh Jain, captain of the Indian team, said:

“Qualifying for the Asian qualifiers and representing India as well as the country’s CS:GO community is an incredible accomplishment for all of us. I am really happy that we finished at the top in the South Asian Regionals by beating each and every team. This is the result of months of extensive practice sessions, strategic planning, and careful analysis of our competitors. The competition will undoubtedly be fierce as we’ll be facing off against some of the best teams from Asia but we feel that we’re ready for it. We can’t wait to compete, and give our best to qualify for the World Esports Championships in Ia?i.“

Vinod Tiwari, ESFI President, stated:

“We are extremely proud of our CS:GO team for making it to the Asian qualifiers. The journey till here has been tough, but the hard work and dedication of our players have paid off. They have put in countless hours of practice and have shown incredible resilience and determination in their stunning victories against the top teams from South Asia. We wish them all the best for their upcoming qualifiers and are confident that they will make it to the grand finals in Ia?i.“

India’s first-ever female CS:GO team, comprising Swayambika Sway Sachar, Shagufta xyaa Iqbal, Nidhi Stormyyy Salekar, Dilraj COCO Kaur Matharu and Aastha CrackShot Nangia, will be playing their South Asia qualifiers against Sri Lanka on May 11, with the Indian Dota 2 team set to kick off their South Asia qualifiers from May 15.

The 15th World Esports Championships will have well-renowned Tekken 7 professional Abhinav Tejan and eFootball athlete Ibrahim Gulrez representing the country at the tournament.