“I want to qualify for Master’s Tokyo” BBL Souhcni expectations from the team
In the VCT EMEA Super Week, BBL took on the VCT LOCK//IN winners of Fnatic. After an intense three game series with the final map going overtime, BBL fell short of Fnatic losing. Despite the loss, BBL displayed immense improvement and will be looking forward to their win in today’s game. In the post-match interview following the game against Fnatic, Strafe had an opportunity to interview Ibrahim “Souhcni” Sagir. In an exclusive post-game 1 on 1 interview BBL Souhcni talks about the team's performance and his expectations for the team.
Q. BBL has taken Ascent off of DRX and Fnatic, two of the best teams in Valorant atm. What is with the BBL-Ascent connection?
BBL Souhcni: “I think before the game we understand their mentality about the map, how they approach the map and we try to abuse them. And I think we do well and we can fight on the site that is easy to take and my teammates are good and hit every shot so it's going to be really easy on the next ascent map as well. We are super confident on Ascent''
Q. You won multiple Eco rounds against Fnatic. What do you call on such rounds?
BBL Souhcni: “I don’t want to talk about my mentality about the game but we don't whatever it takes to win the rounds. We try to find and abuse the openings and rotations. We try to play around the same happenstance, understanding openings and rotations.”
Q. What are your thoughts about LOCK//IN and facing DRX?
BBL Souhcni: “We lost the pearl 13-3 or 13-6, But we got back Ascent but we couldn’t close out 11-1 Haven, but we did our best and tried keeping out mentals high and my teammates were supergood and we tried our best but we couldn’t close it.”
Q. You guys take it really close and play really well, but towards the end you stumble while closing the map. What do you think BBL lacks which would ensure you close out the maps?
BBL Souhcni: “I think match nerves get to us towards the end. Towards the end of the game, we get nervous, but when we are down, enemies should be really scared of us. It is a double edged sword”
Q. You (Souhcni) were the last member to join BBL, how was it adjusting to the team?
BBL Souhcni: “I have been in the team for three months, I joined in January of this year. When I came I felt like the team had really bonded. By the time I came I wanted the bond to improve and that is what makes us special. When I first came in I was so shy at the team dinner, but when I joined the team house, the guys welcomed me and I didn’t have any issues to bond with them.
Q. What changes did you(Souhcni) bring to BBL?
BBL Souhcni: “What I wanted to teach the team is discipline. So I have been trying real hard for this. I think it's about previous IGLs, that the team has been playing super high speed. And we are trying to slow it down, because EMEA needs this. In EMEA you cannot outpace everyone at the highest level of Valorant. So we try to abuse enemy rotations and utilities and that’s why we need to play slow.
Q. Can you elaborate on the role switches in BBL, Especially Aslan on Sentinel?
BBL Souhcni: “When I joined BBL, Aslan played a lot of roles, with the duelist, initiator everything. When I came here I told Aslan, he is a sentinel main and he might not know about it but here you go. He plays S-tier sentinel right and he evolves to this role pretty quickly.
Q. What do you think BBL needs to improve on going forward?
BBL Souhcni: “I think we could’ve beat Fnatic and Karmine Corp. It came down to small mistakes and errors. When we fix those things I think it will become really easy for us to win the matches. I am really happy that my brothers have become really strong since the Karmine Corp match. We made a lot of mistakes against Karmine Corp but we did not do the same against Fnatic. I really want to commend my brothers on their performance.
Q. Do you think IGL’ing in critical situations hinders your performance?
BBL Souhcni: “I think even if I get 0 kills in 30 rounds, It wouldn’t matter to me. I think in the critical moments I feel really comfortable. I think it reflects in the matches, when we were down it was all great.”
Q. What are your (Souhcni) expectations and goals from the team right now?
BBL Souhcni: “I want to qualify for Masters Tokyo. We need to practice discipline, and win anti-ecos. I think the eco round wins give us a massive advantage but we also lose a lot of anti-eco and not losing them will really elevate our performance.”
Q. Who will be the toughest challenge in VCT EMEA for the rest of the season?
BBL Souhcni: “Every team is on the same level, I don't think any team is tougher than others. At playoffs we might see the balance of EMEA but I think right now everyone is equally tough”
Q. Which team do you(Souhcni) look forward to playing next?
BBL Souhcni: “I look forward to playing NaVi, I love Ange1, I really look forward to playing cNed”
Today, In VCT EMEA Week 2 Action BBL will take on NaVi. BBL will be looking forward to closing the series and getting on the scoreboard.
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Credits: Riot Games // VCT
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