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Five Indian COD: Mobile teams have made the nation proud by qualifying for the regional playoffs of the World Championship. These are the five out of the 8 teams that will battle for the top three seeds in order to make it to the LAN event or Stage 5 of the COD: Mobile World Championship.
Ahead of the South Asia and Middle East playoffs, taking place on 21st and 22nd August, Team Vitality (VIT), Insidious Esports (Team IND), GodLike (GodL), Revenant Esports (RNT), and True Rippers Esports (TR) are grinding day and night in order to advance to the next stage and have a shot at earning the title of the 'World Champion'.
The stakes are higher than ever, and no team would like to be left behind. However, all five of these teams are confident they will make it to the next stage and not only make their fans proud but also the nation, by bringing the major COD: Mobile esports trophy home.
In a series of exclusive conversations with Sportskeeda's Shwetang Parthsarthy, all five of the Indian teams qualified for Stage 4 of COD: Mobile talked about their experience in the regional qualifiers and their plans for the playoffs.
Top Indian COD: Mobile teams talk about their WC experience so far
Team Vitality
Team Vitality goes in as the fan favorite and the top seeded team, as it placed first in the South Asia and Middle East qualifiers. Here is an excerpt of the conversation with Team Vitality:
Q) How was your experience playing the Stage three of COD: Mobile WC and what are the few difficulties that your team faced playing the stage?
It was definitely not easy as there were many good teams that we had to face throughout the stage. There were hacking allegations made at some of the participating teams, but we did our best not to get distracted and just focus on our game. We're glad our strategy worked and we emerged as the South Asia/ Middle East champions in Stage 3 of COD: Mobile World Championship.
Q)How do you feel about being one of the top 8 teams from the region qualifying for the next stage of COD: Mobile WC and what are your expectations/strategies for the next stage?
We are very excited to compete in the upcoming Stage 4. Facing the other top 7 teams is definitely something we are looking forward to. Going into Stage 4, we plan on preparing strategies for each team and certainly aim to qualify for the next stage.
Q) With 5 Indian teams qualifying for the next stage of COD: Mobile WC, what are the chances of India bringing a major esports trophy home?
There are 3 Middle Eastern teams and 5 Indian teams (including Team Vitality) that have qualified for Stage 4. With a total of 3 slots from our region for Stage 5, we think there is a good chance a majority of teams from India are going to Stage 5 and bringing the COD: Mobile World Championship 2021 trophy home.
Q) Team Vitality is the 1st place winner of the Regional qualifiers, putting it above the rest of the qualified teams. How does that contribute to the morale and confidence of the team and does that mean you are definitely the strongest contender from your region?
Though we defeated every team which came against us in Stage 3, there are some teams from our region that we didn't get the chance to face. However, they too have qualified for stage 4. So, we're certainly looking forward to the competition and hopefully we'll come out on top.
Insidious Esports (Team IND)
Team IND is formed of the same roster that placed first in the previous year's Stage 4 of the COD: Mobile WC. The former regional champs are certainly hoping for a shot at the title they barely missed out on. Here is an excerpt of the conversation with Team IND:
Q) How was your experience playing the Stage three of COD: Mobile WC and what are the few difficulties that your team faced playing the stage?
Stage 3 has always been this dark stage. Nobody knows what will happen since there are 256 teams which makes it harder to moderate all the matches played. This is why many people in Stage 3 use third-party apps and no one can prove it because nothing is getting checked. Our experience was similar to last year where we faced many teams who seemed suspicious but in the end it's about qualifying for Stage 4 and we're happy we made it even after all the difficulties.
Q) How do you feel about being one of the top 8 teams from the region qualifying for the next stage of COD: Mobile WC and what are your expectations/strategies for the next stage?
We feel very proud being one of the teams representing our country on such a big stage. Moreover, this time the matches from out region will finally be broadcasted so we're excited and very eager to play Stage 4 and take the team to the top . Regarding strategies, we don't think we have ever had any extraordinary strategies, but yes we'll be playing our best game and hope for the best.
Q) With 5 Indian teams qualifying for the next stage of COD: Mobile WC, what are the chances of India bringing a major esports trophy home?
We think we can achieve bigger things in this game, particularly at an international level, because all the Indian teams that have qualified for Stage 4 of the COD: Mobile WC are on par with any team from the world . We also think this is the biggest chance India will have at winning the World Championship in any esports title and in the end we have that dream and are working hard everyday to achieve it.
GodLike
GodLike is certainly one of the best Indian COD: Mobile teams, and they have performed consistently in major tournaments with many trophies under their belt. Here is an excerpt of the conversation with GodLike:
Q) How was your experience playing the Stage three of COD: Mobile WC and what are the few difficulties that your team faced playing the stage?
It wasn't that good or extremely bad, first two matches were good, went as expected and after that we played against 2 teams with hacks and cheats, which made it hard for us to play the game, especially and because we were caught under prefires from everywhere. However, we still managed to win against them. Apart from that everything went smoothly and well.
Q) How do you feel about being one of the top 8 teams from the region qualifying for the next stage of COD: Mobile WC and what are your expectations/strategies for the next stage?
Stage 3 went almost as we expected. We were confident enough to know that we would be one of the teams qualifying for Stage 4. The regional playoffs are certainly going to be hard, especially since it's mobile only. Therefore, we certainly have to prepare accordingly in order to best our opponents.
Q) With 5 Indian teams qualifying for the next stage of COD: Mobile WC, what are the chances of India bringing a major esports trophy home?
The chances are definitely pretty high considering it's a mobile only stage. We hope to play on an esports version of COD: Mobile, built for tournamnets, to ensure a smooth running of the playoffs. There's a good chance one of the Indian teams is going to bring the trophy home.
Revenant Esports
Revenant Esports has currenty been dominating the mobile esports scene in BGMI and COD: Mobile. They came out victorious from the lower bracket to qualify for the regional qualifiers and will certainly aim to win the WC to further their dominance. Here is an excerpt of the conversation with RNT's Divyanshu 'Rekkles' Pabia:
Q) How was your experience playing the Stage three of COD: Mobile WC and what are the few difficulties that your team faced playing the stage?
We faced some of the best teams in our region, and we really had to put it all in, to secure our spot in the final 8. We were prepared for most of the matches, however, there were frequent improvisations mid-game. The adrenaline rush I felt whilst clutching or the final few seconds of the match, I absolutely loved it. We played against a lot of teams from other regions, mostly from the Middle East which made our ping higher than normal, but it was nothing my team couldn’t handle and we were already prepared for that disadvantage.
Considering the team was relatively new, we had to put in extra hours of grind to build the same level of synergy as the other top-tier teams participating and I would say the efforts were all worth it. In-game moderation for this stage was absent and a lot of things went un-noticed but thankfully we didn’t have to face many problems in that department. Even after all these hardships we came on the other side and I am extremely excited for what Stage 4 has in store for me and my team.
Q) How do you feel about being one of the top 8 teams from the region qualifying for the next stage of COD: Mobile WC, and what are your expectations/strategies for the next stage?
As of now I feel confident and motivated to perform even better in the upcoming Regional Playoffs, and yes, being one of the Top 8 in our region sure fills my heart with joy with what me and my team have achieved together in such a short amount of time. But it’s no time for celebration. Stage 4 means there’s no looking back and the grind can’t be put on hold, as the Playoffs are right around the corner with very less time remaining.
Our basic strategy remains the same, to study our opponents and counter them in the best possible way. I would say we are unpredictable and it’s always been like that because of our unique play-style and ability to improvise. The competition from here gets even tougher as we’ll be facing the best in our region but we are ready for what’s coming.
Q) With 5 Indian teams qualifying for the next stage of COD: Mobile WC, what are the chances of India bringing a major esports trophy home?
India is currently being represented by the 5 best teams from the region and I think the trophy is ours for the taking, one way or another. Yes, I am confident about it because I’ve seen the teams grind for an entire year. The way new talent has emerged in the past few months, I’ve a good feeling that an Indian Team is going to make it all the way to the very top. I feel extremely proud while saying that me and my team are representing India at COD: Mobile WC with everyone’s eyes on us.
True Ripper Esports
TR is one of the newest teams to enter the Indian COD: Mobile competitive scene, and for them to qualify for the regional playoffs is certainly a dream come true for the players. Here is an excerpt of the conversation with True Rippers Esports:
Q) How was your experience playing the Stage three of COD: Mobile WC and what are the few difficulties that your team faced playing the stage?
Playing Stage 3 of COD: Mobile WC was quite a challenge for us as the pressure that was on us was immense. We faced a few Middle Eastern teams and to beat them with all the desync due to cross server matches was certainly hard but we managed to do well. Our team has always pulled up in all situations against all the odds put up against us.
Q) How do you feel about being one of the top 8 teams from the region qualifying for the next stage of COD: Mobile WC and what are your expectations/strategies for the next stage?
To be honest we feel quite normal and this is what we signed up for and have wanted to achieve this for a long time. For the past year our goal has always been to make it to the World Championship and to know that we are half way through gives us immense pleasure. At the same time, a lot of pressure is also added to our shoulders as we need to show we can do well in the Stage 4 of COD: Mobile WC.
Q) With 5 Indian teams qualifying for the next stage of the COD: Mobile WC, what are the chances of India bringing a major esports trophy home?
Bringing home a major trophy like the COD: Mobile WC is no joke and it requires an immense amount of hard work and strategising. The major task that the Indian teams will face is beating the #1 EU team Nova and the Chinese teams that show a lot of promise. So, for India to bring home the trophy will all come down to adapting to other metas and reading how the global teams play.
Q) True Rippers is also one of the most inexperienced sides as compared to the other COD: Mobile teams that have qualified from India. How do you feel about going up against a competition that has some of the biggest community tournament wins under them?
Experience only comes with time and we have been thriving in the COD: Mobile community for quite some time and we have already beaten a few of the experienced sides. We don't wish to live in fear forever because from day one, we have never considered any team undefeatable. We are nothing but excited for what's to come in the future, because we started out with nothing compared to all the other four qualified teams. We are what truly defines an underdog team and we have given a lot of hope to all the underdog teams in this community. Fortunately, we are no longer underdogs and it's time for us to shine.
Also read: COD: Mobile World Championship 2021 Stage 4 SA/ME: Qualified teams, format, and more
