European organization Acend has practiced without Vlad “Kiles” Shvets on its VALORANT roster, multiple sources told Dot Esports on March 28.
Acend has not made a decision yet to bench or release Kiles since the team is practicing with new players to test out a potential roster change. At time of writing, it’s possible Kiles could remain on the roster.
Acend practiced today with Wave Esports substitute player Yiğithan “DeepMans” Kesici and Team BDS player David “Fizzy” Figueiredo, according to multiple sources. Kiles was absent from today’s practice.
Acend made a major roster change with the benching of in-game leader Santeri “BONECOLD” Sassi, the organization announced on March 23. BONECOLD remains under contract with the organization while he explores his options.
Both Kiles and BONECOLD were a part of Acend’s VALORANT roster that lifted the Champions trophy last December. They beat Gambit in the grand finals on Dec. 12 and won the $350,000 grand prize.
Since that victory at Champions, Acend have fallen flat domestically. During the first stage of 2022 EMEA Challengers, which concluded yesterday, Acend failed to make the playoff stage after a fifth-place finish in Group B.
Acend were defeated by Guild, Fnatic, and BBL Esports, which resulted in a 2-3 record for the reigning champions. This ensured that Acend would be unable to qualify for the first international tournament of the year next month.
Instead, Team Liquid, Fnatic, and G2 Esports will attend VCT Masters in Reykjavík, Iceland, which is set to begin on April 11.
