The inaugural Commonwealth Esports Championships and Commonwealth Esports Forum are quickly approaching, and Indian esports fans are eager to cheer on their national teams. Set to take place in Birmingham, England, the Esports Championships will feature three major gaming titles—Dota 2, eFootball series by Konami, and Rocket League—at the International Convention Centre (ICC) on August 6 and 7.
Over 100 esports athletes will take centre stage in Birmingham, UK at the International Convention Centre on August 6 and 7, 2022. They will compete at the Commonwealth Esports Championships for the very first time. These athletes representing their nations will go head-to-head in three esports titles – Dota 2, eFootball series, and Rocket League.
This event will run in parallel with the CWG 2022. Although it won’t be an official CWG medal event, the Commonwealth esports championships will have their own medals and branding. All three titles, announced by the Global Esports Federation and the Commonwealth Games Federation on Tuesday, will feature an open category as well as a women’s-only category at the event.
The Indian contingent will be participating in DOTA 2 and Rocket League, two of the three esports gaming titles. The team is said to have two excellent rosters, both of which have put up strong performances in the South Asian Regional Qualifiers to book their spots at the event.
The Esports Federation of India (ESFI) hosted a grand send-off ceremony to facilitate the national contingent before they left for England. During the ceremony, the official team kit for the CWG was also revealed.
The Indian contingent will participate in two categories
The inaugural Commonwealth Esports Championships will feature Dota 2, the eFootball series by Konami and Rocket League
At the Commonwealth Esports Championships 2022 (CEC 2022), the Indian contingent will be participating in the Rocket League and DOTA 2. The esports athletes are set to compete to win medals alongside their sporting peers for the very first time. The teams comprises of:
- Indian Dota 2 Team: Moin Ejaz, Abhishek Yadav, Ketan Goyal, Shubhnam Goli, and Vishal Vernekar
- Indian Rocket League Team: Hargun Singh, Rushil Reddy and Sandeep Sahani
Ahead of this exciting event, the captains of the respective teams shared their thoughts and goals in an interview. Hargun Singh of the Indian Rocket League Team said,
“I am really excited about esports being included in a Commonwealth event, as this will really change how esports is perceived among people around the world. As a player, it’s a huge opportunity being given to us, and we are really going to do our best to represent India as best as we can. All of us are putting in extra effort to maximise everyone’s potential and work together as a team.”
Moin Ejaz, the skipper of the Indian Dota 2 Team, expressed his views,
“The entire team is looking forward to playing against the best teams in the world and proving our mettle. We have been paying a lot of attention to our strategies and practising a lot in the hopes of a podium finish. Getting the chance to represent the nation in the very first Commonwealth Esports Championship is a very sweet reward to show for all of the efforts we have made in playing this game at the highest level.”
“The rise of Esports in India in the last few years has truly been remarkable and the participation of two teams on behalf of the nation on the global stage is a result of that,”
Lokesh Suji, Director ESFI & VP-Asian Esports Federation, shared on India’s participation in CEC 2022.
India’s performance so far
Team Dota 2
The Indian DOTA 2 team displayed an impressive performance during the regional qualifiers of CWEC 2022 by claiming four wins from six matches. The team defeated Sri Lanka in both rounds, whereas they managed to win in one round each against Pakistan and Bangladesh to finish second after Pakistan.
Following the regional qualifiers of CWEC 2022, the Indian DOTA 2 team secured a spot for themselves at the Commonwealth Esports Championships 2022. This is the same team which is selected for the Asian Games to represent India at the DOTA 2 event.
Team Rocket League
The Indian Rocket League team, led by Hargun Singh, won all three matches during the regional qualifiers for CWEC 2022. The team, consisting of players from the top two Rocket League teams in the country, has participated in over 30 Rocket League events in the past 3 years.
These team players hold the Grand Champion Rank in the Rocket League game. The Indian Rocket League team defeated all other countries in the South Asian Regional qualifiers for the Commonwealth Esports Championships 2022.
CEC 2022: Schedule, groups, and tickets
The Preliminary rounds for CEC 2022 are set to be held from August 3-5 at Nottingham Trent University, while the semi-finals and finals will be conducted on August 6-7 at ICC, Birmingham. Seven countries have qualified for DOTA 2, and eight countries for Rocket League at the event.
The schedule for the Commonwealth Esports Championships 2022 is as follows:
Day 1 – Session 1:
- 10.30 am: Rocket League (Open) – Third Place match
- 11.30 am: Rocket League (Open) – Grand Final
- 1.00 pm: eFootball Series (Open) – Third Place match
- 1.30 pm: eFootball Series (Open) – Grand Final
Day 1 – Session 2:
- 3.00 pm – DOTA 2 (Women’s) – Third Place match
- 6.00 pm – DOTA 2 (Women’s) – Grand Final
Day 2 – Session 1:
- 10.30 am: Rocket League (Women’s) – Third Place match
- 11.30 am: Rocket League (Women’s) – Grand Final
- 1.00 pm: eFootball Series (Women’s) – Third Place Match
- 1.30 pm: eFootball Series (Women’s) – Grand Final
Day 2 – Session 2:
- 3.00 pm: DOTA 2 (Open) – Third Place match
- 6.00 pm: DOTA 2 (Open) – Grand Final
India is set to participate in two categories: Rocket League (Open) and Dota 2 (Open).
For DOTA 2, India is placed in Group A with England, Wales, and Trinidad and Tobago. As for the Rocket League, India is placed in Group B with Canada, England, and Wales. Fans can visit the official website of Commonwealth Esports Championships 2022 to book tickets for this prestigious event.
The Indian contingent made their way to Birmingham early in the morning on Monday, August 1, 2022. Indian fans will be hoping to see both teams make a strong mark at the inaugural Commonwealth Esports Championships 2022. Given their mettle and existing track record, the matches are going to be an intense, yet thrilling affair.