After all efforts in CS: GO were wasted, I had to switch to Valorant: Santhosh 'Rafaaaa' Kumar, Team Tamilas star

Q. Who do you think is the best Valorant player in India as of now?

R: There are so many good players. But the one who has impressed me a lot is my friend, Mohit mw1 Wakle. He is not playing for any team at the moment, but I hope he starts playing competitively shortly.

Q. Who is your favorite Agent in the game?

R: Phoenix. Easy answer.

Q. What are your designs going forward? Are you planning a professional career in Valorant?

R: There are no plans as such. We are just grinding and practicing to become the best in India. That’s our only goal. Once we achieve it, we can start thinking on an international level. And as far as a professional career is concerned, I’m not sure. I don’t know what the future holds. Let’s see.

Q. You have participated in many Esports Club Championship Series tournaments. How was your experience?

R: To be frank, TEC has conducted the best online tournaments in India that I have seen. Their quality of hosting the tournament, their top-notch casters and analysts, their production, their social media interactions all deserve special appreciation. This was the first time I saw such a great TO (tournament organizer) in India. Their admins were so friendly and interactive; if there were any problems, they tried to address them as soon as possible.

And for our performance experience in the TEC series, in the first one, we were only able to get into the top 32 spots before getting eliminated by Global Esports. After that, we brought in two new players, and in the TEC Series 2, we ended up in fifth.

We knew we could have done a lot better, and it wasn’t our best. We grinded a lot before Series 3, and we had to sub in a player for Tag as he had some health issues. We brought in JINNN in his place. Till the round of 16, our journey in TEC Series 3 was smooth and easy. We lost to Team Far Esports in the round of eight and moved into the loser’s bracket.

From there, we knew we had what it takes to go all the way to the finals. We took one game at a time, one map at a time. We all gave our best, we took revenge against teams who beat us in the previous series – Team Global and Exceeli Esports – and we made it to the grand finals.

It was against Far Esports, to whom we lost in the upper bracket. The team who kicked us to the lower bracket the same series. We knew we were the better team but lost to them because of a few mistakes the first time. But in the finals, we made sure the errors were minimized, no one got tilted, and whatever happened, the communication would be on point.

We beat them 3-1 in the grand finals and became the champions of TEC Valorant Series 3. A word of special appreciation for our sixth player, JINNN, who clutched out so many crucial rounds for our team and helped us win this event. This victory is very close to my heart and is definitely a memorable experience for me.

Q. You had the opportunity to go against some of the best Valorant rosters in the Esports Club Challenger Series. Who would you say were your most formidable opponents?

R: We all know that VLT is the best team in India currently. But I do believe there are other equally good teams. For me, I would say both VLT and Global Esports are the toughest opponents I’ve faced so far. A special mention for the latter, as I believe they can also be the No 1 team in India. They have highly-skilled players, and I hope they get a proper fifth player soon.

Q. What do you feel are the shortcomings of Tamil Tamilas? What are the areas you think you need to improve before upcoming tournaments?

R: Most importantly, we don’t have a dedicated in-game leader. That’s a huge problem, I would say. The second thing is that we are not playing as a team; instead, it’s like all five of us are playing solo, but within a team. That shouldn’t happen, and we are trying our best to improve our teamwork and synergy. We also need to improve on our communication.

Q. Do you feel that India can become a powerhouse in Valorant on the international stage?

R: Yes, I believe so. India has many skilled players and smart IGLs, but the problem is a roster doesn’t stick together for more than five months. Frequent roster shuffles don’t allow teams to reach their peak. We all need to stick together for a long time to see the actual results.

India first needs to cement its place in the SEA region. The competition is tough in the SEA region, as many teams have started boot camping and grinding.

Q. Is there anything you would like to say to the next generation of esports pros of India?

R: Grind, grind, grind. Don’t be toxic, and make sure you give respect to fellow gamers.