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Valorant is Riot Games' entry into the world of competitive FPS gaming. Since its inception, Valorant has grown into one of the most popular first-person shooter titles played across the world, competing with the prolonged success of Valve's Counter Strike: Global Offensive.
Riot Games are set to host the inaugural Valorant Champions 2021 event in Berlin from December 1 to 12 to determine the first ever world champion of Valorant.
Teams from all corners of the world competed in various stages of the Valorant Champions Tour, namely the Open Qualifiers, Challengers, Masters, and Last Chance Qualifiers to earn the opportunity to compete in the tournament's final stage.
As the Valorant Champions 2021 event approaches, Sportskeeda lists 5 players who are expected to be the stars of the tournament, in terms of their individual performance as well as their team's success. Multiple players from the same team are not included in the list.
Valorant Champions Berlin 2021: 5 players who are expected to dominate the tournament
5) Mehmet Yağız "cNed" İpek
Team: Acend (EMEA)
Agents: Jett, Sage
cNed is a 19-year-old professional Valorant player emerging out of Istanbul, Turkey. After representing teams like BBL Esports and nolpenki in 2020, cNed joined a roster that went on to form Acend, one of the leading teams in Valorant's EMEA circuit.
cNed is the driving force behind the success of Acend, which has made an immediate impact since their formation, winning their debut tournament at the VCT 2021: Europe Stage 1 Masters. Often playing as Jett, cNed is considered one of the best players in the role due to his revered Operator skills and ability to clutch difficult situations. Acend qualified for Valorant Champions through their EMEA circuit standings.
4) Adil "ScreaM" Benrlitom
Team: Team Liquid (EMEA)
Agents: Jett, Reyna
ScreaM is an FPS gaming veteran who spent a decade as a professional player in Counter Strike Source and Global Offensive. The Belgian represented several top-tier organizations during his tenure as a CSGO player. Team Liquid added ScreaM to their Valorant roster in August 2020, after he started playing the game earlier that year.
ScreaM was one of the most notable entry fraggers in CS:GO, and a highly skilled rifler, having one of the best headshot ratios in the history of the game. Team Liquid missed out on Champions qualification from the circuit rankings. After the addition of his younger brother Nivera to the squad, ScreaM led the team to a Champions Berlin spot by winning the Last Chance Qualifiers EMEA.
3) Jaccob "yay" Whiteaker
Team: Team Envy (NA)
Agents: Jett, Sage
Nicknamed "El Diablo", Jaccob Whiteaker is a 23-year-old former professional Counter Strike: Global Offensive player who switched over to Valorant in September 2020. After failing to find his mark in CSGO, yay joined Andbox's roster for Valorant, later being acquired by Team Envy.
yay is a talented duelist who is fearless in joining outnumbered gunfights and can earn a frag with almost any weapon in the game. As a regular Jett user, yay is proficient in using the Operator, even in close-range situations. Whiteaker was pivotal to Team Envy's success' in VCT 2021: Stage 3 Masters Berlin, taking them to the grand finals. Envy's circuit standings in the North American circuit of Valorant enabled them to qualify for Valorant Champions Berlin 2021.
2) Ayaz "nAts" Akhmetshin
Team: Gambit (EMEA)
Agents: Cypher, Viper
nAts is a former Counter Strike: Global Offensive player who has been part of Gambit Esports' Valorant roster since September 2020. After representing various amateur teams in CSGO's competitive circle, the 19-year-old made a move to Valorant by joining FishkaVTom in June 2020.
Presently, nAts is the most renowned Sentinel player in Valorant. Commonly seen as Cypher, the Russian is known to use his extensive map knowledge to lurk around and earn valuable kills and information for the team. Despite playing defensive roles, nAts is proficient in using his abilities to often emerge as the top fragger for his team. He led Gambit to a tournament victory at VCT Stage 3 Masters Berlin, earning them a spot at Valorant Champions 2021 Berlin.
1) Tyson "TenZ" Ngo
Team: Sentinels (NA)
Agents: Jett, Reyna
Nicknamed Valorant's "chosen one", Tyson "TenZ" Ngo is a 20-year-old former professional CS:GO player who is known across the world for his audacious plays as Jett. TenZ represented various professional clubs in Counter Strike for 3 years before making the switch to Valorant. After becoming the first North American to reach Radiant on Valorant, TenZ was acquired by Sentinels in March 2020.
TenZ is renowned for his daring plays which, apart from being entertaining, are astonishing for players to watch. The Canadian player possesses inhuman reflexes and well-nurtured mechanical skills that allow him to conveniently take charge as the primary fragger for the team. Paired with the abilities of Jett that taunt him into performing risky plays, TenZ is one of the most menacing players that the teams at Valorant Champions 2021 have to watch out for.
Sentinels qualified for the tournament by topping their North American circuit points rankings by a mile, thanks to their victory at the VCT: Stage 2 Masters Reykjavík.
