Ex-NiP, mousesports CSGO players form new Valorant esports squad

Former Counter-Strike: Global Offensive player Christian “loWel” Garcia has announced the formation of a new Valorant esports squad named Team Inferno.

The team’s roster was also revealed, and it includes the following players: 

• William “draken” Sundin
• Christian “loWel” Garcia
• Mattias “Khobra” Heidnertis
• Melih “pAura” Karaduran
• Dustyn “nieSoW” Durnas

Despite earlier speculation, the team will not be playing with former CSGO players Daniil “pipsoN” Meshcheryakov and Joseph “Luzuh” Loose, with khobra and paura joining in their stead.

loWel is a well-known face in the CSGO scene competing for the likes of mousesports, Hellraisers, and Team Dignitas in the past. His last gig in CS before switching over to Valorant was with Movistar Riders. Alongside G2 Esports Valorant player Oscar “mixwell” Cañellas, he is considered to be one of the finest Spanish players in the history of CS.

Another popular name on Inferno’s roster is that of draken. The Swedish AWPer made a name for himself in CSGO competing for Ninjas in Pyjamas and Fnatic. draken is the most experienced Valorant player on the roster and has been competing in the game since April. He has two noteworthy tournament victories to his name in Valorant, in the G2 Esports European Brawl and Twitch Rivals: VALORANT Launch Showdown, albeit with two different squads. Surprisingly, he will not be the main Operator on the team.

The rest of the roster is made up of lesser-known players from different FPS backgrounds. khobra competed in the regional Swedish CSGO scene with likes of Lemondogs and AliGon. nieSoW had stints in a couple of different games apart from CS including Apex Legends and Battalion 1944, with the player getting banned from the latter due to cheating in tournaments.

pAura is a newcomer to the esports scene, but has asserted himself as one of the best Cyphers in Europe. Together with Turkish team looking4org, he holds numerous tournament victories in Valorant.

Lastly, Team Inferno will be coached by Tanishq “Tanizhq” Sabharwal, a former Overwatch coach best known for his tenures with Montreal Rebellion and Team Gigantti.

The team will be making its debut at the LVL Clash 2 this weekend where they will face off against Europe’s top teams.