What makes Vega Squadron dangerous? About Virtus.pro's first opponents in Krakow
The Sharks from CIS who can destroy even Ninjas in Pyjamas.
Who are Vega Squadron?
Vega Squadron are new to the professional Counter-Strike scene. It is a rare case when a team known only for regional tournaments proves themselves and go over their heads. The Sharks proved themselves at the qualifiers for The ELEAGUE Major 2017, where they eliminated Ninjas in Pyjamas, which barely anyone expected.
The team was built back at the beginning of 2015, when jR, Mir, keshandr, and hutji won Uprise Championship Season 2. The roster managed to find the fifth stable player—Leonid “chopper” Vishnyakov. Since the moment Vega Squadron’s contracts had been resigned, the team practiced actively and got into a good shape that allowed them to win at CIS Minor - PGL Major Krakow 2017 and qualify for the Major. Vega Squadron are dark horses, part of the troop from the CIS in Krakow that eliminated North American teams this time.
How have they been performing recently?
After a great performance at the qualifiers for the upcoming Major, where the Sharks defeated NiP with a score of 16:2 and outperformed CLG (16:14), the team has disappeared out of sight by just not participating in large tournaments. Vega Squadron qualified for the CIS Minor and did their best, having won against such teams as Tengri, Spirit Academy, and pro100.
At the qualifiers for PGL Major Krakow the CIS team defeated OpTic Gaming (16:10), TyLoo (16:10), and Team Dignitas (16:5). However, the Sharks lost to HellRaisers (10:16) and PENTA (8:16). Judging by their results at LAN tournaments, Vega Squadron still depend on emotions. Alexander 'Lk-' Lemeshev told that the team managed to stay calm before the match against Dignitas and make the Danish play their game, which was the key to the victory.
Who carries Vega Squadron?
Nikolay "mir" Bityukov is considered the star player of the CIS, with KDA of 1.24 at LAN events according to hltv.org.
Leonid “chopper” Visnyakov demonstrates equally good performance and wins 60% of clutches, according to hltv.org.
Virtus.pro G2A and Vega Squadron are facing each other on July 16 in the first round of PGL Major Krakow 2017. Both teams are preparing for the match and do not want to make a mistake of underestimating the opponent.
Dmitriy "jR" Chervak, captain of Vega Squadron, about Virtus.pro: “I admire them because they don’t change the roster despite having hard times. I believe that they won’t make any changes even if they don't perform as expected. Together they can overcome this period and get in shape.”
Author: Anton Kozlov