TenZ returns to competitive Valorant as a stand-in for Sentinels
Cloud9’s streamer Tyson “TenZ” Ngo will be playing for Sentinels in the upcoming Valorant Champions Tour: North America Masters.
Sentinels Valorant team was in dire straits after dropping its best player from the active roster ahead of VCT Masters One. Jay “Sinatraa” Won was accused of sexual and mental abuse by ex-girlfriend Cleo, who publicized voice recordings and screenshots from said events. Her statement prompted a community-wide backlash and an internal investigation from Sentinels and Riot Games. Both parties have suspended the player for the time being. During the inquiries, the pro player will remain seated on the sideline, which initially left Sentinels with an empty slot for upcoming events.
The American esports organization has found an initiator in TenZ, Cloud9’s former professional player and streamer. Earlier, a report by neL confirmed that the team has acquired TenZ on loan to stand in for sinatraa during VCT Masters One.
We’re happy to announce that @TenZOfficial will be joining Sentinels to compete in Masters Stage 1.
— Sentinels (@Sentinels) March 11, 2021
The ruling entailed that one player can’t be in contract with two teams at a time, leaving Sentinels with a few options. The team could either drop TenZ or acquire him permanently. It seems that Sentinels opted for the latter.
Sentinels has been performing at peak efficiency and TenZ’s addition to the current lineup makes sense. The Valorant streamer fits nicely into the versatile lineup where sinatraa was the primary Sova player. TenZ has also been kenned for his tricks with the Russian initiator Sova in professional matches and his Twitch streams. The streamer can effectively replace sinatraa in Sentinels as both the players have mastered playing Sova.
TenZ returns to pro Valorant
The Canadian player kicked off his career in 2017 in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and then switched to Riot Games’ tactical shooter. He became the first player to hit Radiant rank and acquired a top spot in Valorant ranking multiple times. After peaking his career’s success under Cloud9’s banner, TenZ stepped away from competitive Valorant to focus on streaming.
TenZ never ruled out the possibility of returning, but fans had expected him to come back to Cloud9 if he ever considers pro play. Likely, TenZ didn’t want to miss out on a chance to play Valorant’s biggest event to date alongside skilled players of Sentinels, which has led to him to pause his competitive break. Moreover, TenZ was one of the few inactive players who come to close to the skill level of sinatraa, making him a viable alternative Sentinels.
While Sentinels has pulled TenZ out of Cloud9 as a done deal, it remains to be seen how the organization will deal with the aftermath of the investigation. It is likely a temporary setup, and Cloud9 may re-buy its star streamer out of the Sentinel contract.
VCT Masters One starts on 12 March with Envy going up against Gen.G and XSET locking horns with FaZe Clan. Fans can watch TenZ in action against Luminosity on March 13.
Fariha Bhatti is a long-time gaming writer who loves competitive FPS games and slots with particularly fun themes. She got her start playing classic games developed by SNK, from legendary fighting game series The King of Fighters to challenging platform franchise Metal Slug. She now spends most of her time playing Valorant and Counter-Strike 2 while working her way through new slot releases to find her next favorite. Fariha has been published at PCGamesN, TalkEsport and ONE Esports.
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