NAVI entered the Valorant scene towards the tail end of the 2021 season by signing the No Pressure roster, who had just qualified for the EMEA Challengers Playoffs. During that tournament, they managed a series victory over Team Liquid but ultimately finished in last place.
We're ready to announce NAVI #VALORANT roster changes. See the details in the article.
📰: https://t.co/wnmB7inHMh#navination pic.twitter.com/7BrRjCLzfs
— NAVI (@natusvincere) May 10, 2022
With the addition of Jady over the winter break, NAVI kicked off their 2022 season by nearly qualifying for EMEA Challengers in the first CIS qualifier, only losing out to FunPlus Phoenix in a grand finals reverse sweep. In their second attempt at qualifying, NAVI swept the grand final to secure a spot in the group stage.
What Changes Has NAVI Made?
Natus Vincere have rounded out their roster with the addition of Nikolai “zeddy” Lapko and have said goodbye to Yaroslav “Jady” Nikolaev. Jady announced in a twitlonger that he would be taking a break from competing.
A decent start to the group stage saw NAVI hold a 1-1 record before the war in Ukraine put the event temporarily on hold. Once competition resumed, NAVI played three matches in the last week of the group stage. They found a win against BIG but met their match against M3 Champions and FPX, two of their CIS rivals. They ultimately finished fourth in their group with a 2-3 record, which meant they were out of playoff contention.
zeddy has been a longstanding member of the CIS scene, going all the way back to 2020 when he and his team forZe won First Strike: CIS. More recently, he has been a part of One Breath Gaming. The team participated in the regional CIS league before the event was cancelled due to the ongoing conflict in the region.
Natus Vincere are now:
- Nikolai “zeddy” Lapko
- Kirill “Cloud” Nehozhin
- Denis “dinkzj” Tkachev
- Mikhail “Duno” Fokin
- Artur “7ssk7” Kurshin
Stage 2 kicks off in just two days, when NAVI will face BBL Esports in the first week of the EMEA group stage.
Also Read- Fnatic Announces Their New Roster for VCT EMEA Challengers 2
