In three days at VCT Americas, NRG Esports was forced into three crucial matchups. IGL Pujan ‘FNS’ Mehta acknowledged he is not a fan of the playoff structure in an interview.. According to FNS, NRG Esports needed more time to prepare for the VCT Americas Playoff stage. Five days after their final regular-season game, the third-seeded NRG faced the sixth-seeded Evil Geniuses in their opening match.
The NRG team was sent to the expedited lower bracket after losing to Evil Geniuses 2-1 in the playoff upper bracket. They defeated FURIA 2-0 the following day. They are facing Cloud9 with berths at VCT Masters Tokyo and Valorant Champions on the line only 24 hours after that match. FNS has been vocal about his dislike of the playoff structure and other tournament decisions, and he stated that he still doesn’t like having to play so many matches back-to-back.
Speed-running contests of this nature are not suitable for the players. “It might be alright for the viewers and other things; perhaps it helps them with their timetable. But since it prevents us from performing at our peak, it is undoubtedly bad for the players. We are unable to study as much as we can due to this. Straight tournament play into the playoffs is the format.
Next in the VCT Americas playoff are NRG and FNS versus Cloud9
NRG is a team that diligently plans and earns renown for actively countering opponents and adapting their play style to maintain dominance in the metagame. There is little time to prepare for a new opponent because of the expedited playoff structure, which differs from the regular season, where teams get a whole week between games. You never really have a break to concentrate and reinvent yourself, rebuild, or develop new looks, which adds to the overall stress. As a result, you have one day’s worth of preparation at most, according to FNS.
NRG decided to change up their lineup on Haven for their match versus FURIA Esports, placing FNS on Viper. The IGL claimed that because he had never played the Agent on Haven before, he only had one good practice session with her before the match. FNS also disclosed that he and his head coach slept for roughly seven and a half hours the night before the game.
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