How Sentinels Made a Perfect Run for the VCT Masters Trophy

On the way to the Grand Finals of Masters Reykjavík, Sentinels didn’t drop a single map. They set themselves on top of every other region and finished the tournament with a close victory over fnatic.

For Shahzeb “ShahZaM” Khan and his men, the journey actually started with a match against fnatic as well. There, they already managed to mount a tight 2-0 victory and retained their spot in the Upper Bracket despite the heroics of Nikita “Derke” Sirmitev. After that, Sentinels effortlessly cruised through the tournament and never gave away more than seven points on any map, until they arrived in the Grand Finals unscathed.

The Lower Bracket featured tougher opposition, however. Liquid and fnatic were the two frontrunners and step by step, they removed every other region from the participants’ list. First, the Thai X10 Esports fell, then the Latin Americans of KRÜ. Vikings, the last Brazilian representatives, succumbed later on and even Version1 failed to contend with a resurgent fnatic. But the European success story had to come to an end, as only one competitor would be able to advance from the Lower Bracket. In a brutal Best-of-Three, Derke and his men came out on top, sending Adil “ScreaM” Benrlitom home alongside his troops. Gunning for the Grand Finals, they had to overcome one last hurdle: NUTURN Gaming.

Until that point, the Koreans had held themselves in the Upper Bracket. This way, they managed to stay safe from the European onslaught, but their eventual confrontation was inevitable. Kang “solo” Keun-chul is an FPS legend and in 2005, he already competed in Counter-Strike 1.6 tournaments. Now, he was one step away from making the Grand Finals of the first ever international VALORANT event.

THE FIGHT FOR THE GRAND FINALS

Fnatic opened up with an 8-4 half on Bind. After experiencing some strong opposition, they managed to secure a 13-8 scoreline on the defense, heading for Ascent next. There, NUTURN quickly took control and brought a solid offensive side to the table. Even though fnatic acquired a few round wins in between, the Koreans were eventually victorious on a 13-8 scoreline. So the teams were heading for a third map.

Once again, fnatic were the ones to be in the lead 8-4 at half time. For the last time, NUTURN were unable to break their opponents’ defense. This cost them their shot at the Grand Finals, as fnatic soon held a 2-1 map score and managed to close up to Sentinels. The NA team was already lying in wait in the Grand Finals and were eager to play out the Best-of-Five match.

A CLOSE BUT QUICK BEST-OF-FIVE

Looking at just the overall map score, one might be inclined to think that fnatic didn’t stand a chance in this Grand Finals. A 0-3 really doesn’t look like they were able at all to compete with Sentinels. However, the individual maps couldn’t have been any closer!

After a 7-5 half on Split, Tyson “TenZ” Ngo and his men held a narrow lead. When they secured the second pistol round, they managed to extend it to a 10-5 gap. However, their defense then crumbled, fnatic came back, and even took the lead. Unfortunately, their momentum wasn’t enough to carry them over the finish line. Instead, the teams met at a 12-12 score and entered overtime. There, Sentinels were the ones to win two rounds and close the map out for themselves.

Nonetheless, fnatic were a long shot away from losing the Grand Finals. They proved this on Bind, mounting an 8-4 half with the help of Jake “Boaster” Howlett. So they were finally in a position to acquire a map win, but the Sentinels offensive packed quite a punch. Once again, the two sides entered overtime. Trading rounds, TenZ and his men eventually brought yet another map victory home.

So fnatic actually stood with their backs against the wall. They were in immediate danger of dropping the Grand Finals after just three maps. When Sentinels then went on to dominate them with a 9-3 half on Haven, things were looking grim for Derke and the rest of fnatic. Still, they mounted an incredible comeback and used the second half to tie the score again. But when they were close to reaching yet another overtime, fnatic crumbled in the most crucial last round. On a 13-11 scoreline, Sentinels managed to clutch the Grand Finals victory. The trophy of the first ever international VALORANT LAN event was theirs.

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR VALORANT?

Until Stage 3 Masters in Berlin, North America will likely remain the strongest region. With the notable exception of fnatic, Sentinels have dominated every other team and region. Even Derke and his men obviously don’t possess the mental strength to keep a calm head in these most important moments. ShahZaM, TenZ, and the rest of the team apparently don’t have these issues at all. But will it stay this way forever?

Sentinels have one major advantage: They have only been playing with TenZ for a limited time. The relationships between the players can still grow further, they can still increase their tactical depth even more. On the other side, there is now a plethora of hungry teams, who have made some experience and have gotten demo material, which they can use to study and defeat Sentinels. Where are the holes in the team? Are there weaknesses that they can exploit?

The pressure is mounting on Sentinels both nationally and internationally. They may rest easy for a few days and enjoy their victory, but then the real work begins. If they still want to be the best team in the world when the Stage 3 Masters roll around, they already need to start preparing for the competition now.