India Defeats Pakistan, Nepal In CS:GO South Asia Qualifiers To Reserve Asian Tourney Berth

Earlier this year, the Indian CS:GO team secured their first qualification by emerging victorious over Team Wicked Gaming in the finals of the National Esports Championships (NESC) 2023.

India's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) team displayed their dominance in the South Asian regional qualifiers, securing their spot in the Asian qualifiers scheduled to take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from July 10-17 this year. The team, composed of Harsh Jain (f1redup), Jaspreet Singh (SpawN), Sadab Khan (SK wow^), Piyush Kalwania (clouda), Nikhil Kathe (N1kace), and substitute Omkar Thube (omkar09), started the qualifiers with convincing wins against Bangladesh (16-9) and Sri Lanka (16-8) on the opening day. 

Continuing their momentum on the second day, the Indian team achieved a 16-5 victory against Nepal, followed by a 16-6 triumph over Pakistan. Jain, the team captain, played a pivotal role in their success, amassing an impressive 29 kills against Bangladesh and 31 kills against Nepal.

Expressing his delight, Jain stated, "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. We are elated to have finished at the top in the South Asian Regionals by defeating every team. This achievement is the result of months of rigorous practice, strategic planning, and careful analysis of our competitors. While the competition in the Asian qualifiers will be fierce, we are confident in our readiness. We are eagerly looking forward to competing and giving our best to qualify for the World Esports Championships in Iași."

Earlier this year, the Indian CS:GO team secured their first qualification by emerging victorious over Team Wicked Gaming in the finals of the National Esports Championships (NESC) 2023, organized by the Esports Federation of India (ESFI). They will now face off against top CS:GO teams from Uzbekistan, Indonesia, Vietnam, Pakistan, and Saudi Arabia in the Asian qualifiers, aiming to qualify for the 15th World Esports Championships in Iași, scheduled from August 24 to September 4, 2023.

The 15th World Esports Championship boasts a massive prize pool of $500,000 (roughly Rs 4.12 crore) and is expected to be the largest edition of the tournament to date, with participation from at least 130 countries across eFootball, DOTA 2, Tekken 7, Mobile Legends, PUBG: Mobile, and CS:GO.

Vinod Tiwari, President, ESFI, expressed immense pride in the CS:GO team's achievement, commending their hard work and dedication. He wished them the best for the upcoming qualifiers, expressing confidence in their potential to reach the grand finals in Iași.

In addition to the CS:GO team, India's first-ever female esports team in CS:GO, featuring Swayambika Sachar (Sway), Shagufta Iqbal (xyaa), Nidhi Salekar (Stormyyy), Dilraj Kaur Matharu (COCO), and Aastha Nangia (CrackShot), will compete in the South Asian Qualifiers against Sri Lanka on May 11. The Indian DOTA team will begin their South Asian Qualifiers from May 15 onwards.

Notably, the 15th World Esports Championships will feature popular professionals Abhinav Tejan in Tekken 7 and Ibrahim Gulrez in eFootball, representing India at the prestigious tournament.