How Sentinels are shaping up for Valorant 2021 Champions Tour

After losing to 100 Thieves in the semifinals of the Valorant First Strike’s main event, Sentinels are ready to bounce back.

Sentinels, despite the loss, still performed well in First Strike. Any power rankings list would be incomplete without the team in the top three for NA. The core roster has been together since June, and it’s unlikely fans will see changes anytime soon.

Assessing where Sentinels stand ahead of the Valorant 2021 Champions Tour

There’s a reason Sentinels have been able to place well in every Valorant event they’ve competed in. In fact, they won the most recent one, the JBL Quantum Cup, with a 2-0 victory over Faze.

Sentinel’s success is largely attributed to the balance of their roster. When assessing kills per map, Setnintel’s players are very close to one another. Only IGL Shazbeeb “ShahZaM” Khan placed in the top ten for kills per map during First Strike’s main event. The rest of the team, though, all placed in the top 16. Three Sentinels shared the same number (15.6) for kills per map.

Rather than having a superstar fragger, Sentinels show how effective a balanced roster can be. On any given map, any particular player on this team can pop off.

A team is nothing without its leader. @ShahZaMk First Strike: NA. One hour. pic.twitter.com/Loq5U6YuyD
— Sentinels (@Sentinels) December 4, 2020

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During First Strike, Sentinels often switched their team composition. Enemies have a hard time preparing for this team because of their varying use of Agents. In some ways, though, the frequent changes in Agents may have contributed to their losses.

In the main event, almost every individual player selected only one or two different Agents. This is done so any particular player’s role wouldn’t vary too much. Only five gamers switched between three different Agents, and two of them were Sentinels. Jay “Sinatraa” Wan used Phoenix, Raze, and Sova, while Hunter “Sick” Mims played Phoenix, Raze, and Skye.

Sinatraa and Sick were the only two Sentinels to have a negative KD ratio. Their character selection may be connected to their overall performance, but it could be a coincidence. Agent choice may be a factor they consider moving forward.

Some players on Sentinels also believe they just didn’t play well in their loss in the semis.

I will be demanding a recount, this match win was completely fraudulent!! But seriously GG to 100 thieves was a hard fought battle indeed, the clutch genes were not on our side today.
— Hunter Mims (@SicK_cs) December 6, 2020

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It’s also worth mentioning that Shahzeb “ShahZaM” Khan’s father passed in the middle of First Strike. Not only did this affect his ability to practice and strategize with his teammates, but it also could’ve affected his mentality.

Props to ShahZaM for persevering during his difficult time, as he chose to compete despite the circumstance. With more time to prepare, First Strike’s outcome might have been different.

Lost 1-2 vs. @100Thieves and we are eliminated from First Strike, GGwp. Shoulda closed it out on Icebox and I played poorly last map, sucks but not terrible for 2 weeks of no practice 😐
— Shahzeb Khan (@ShahZaMk) December 6, 2020

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Sentinel’s are putting the loss at the First Strike behind them. After winning the JBL Quantum Cup and topping NA’s power rankings, the squad is ready for the Valorant 2021 Champions Tour. Their recent victories over TSM, Cloud 9, 100 Thieves, and Faze should have them feeling confident in the upcoming event.

Sentinels have high expectations as a perennial contender and holder of the number one spot in the ranks. They just want to become Valorant’s global champion.