We had a chance to sit down and talk to Kirill ‘ANGE1’ Karasiow at DreamHack Delhi about their new HellRaisers lineup, the recent changes, SG553 and the CIS scene in general.
TE: This is a new lineup for HellRaisers. If you guys win it all here, this will be your first event win with the new lineup. You guys are the favourites. How important is it for you guys to win the event?
ANGE1: Tournaments like these are key for teams to gain confidence. We are a new lineup and winning DreamHack Delhi will put us on the right path for 2020.
TE: The results have been far from ideal so far for the current roster. What is your main goal as a team going into 2020?
ANGE1: Our main goal is to qualify for the Major and go to ESL Pro League Finals.
TE: Every Major, we see a deep run from at least one CIS team. Yet, they flow under the radar every time. Why is the scene underrated?
ANGE1: I think the CIS scene is no underrated. There are teams like NaVi fighting for top places but there are also ones who are very inconsistent after good performances at the Major.
TE: What do you think is the main reason behind this pattern in the CIS scene?
ANGE1: Probably, motivation. Major is the greatest motivation for players and the CIS teams prepare much harder for he Major compared to other events.
TE: You mentioned NaVi earlier. They have failed to win a Major despite being consistently in the Top 5 at HLTV Rankings. NaVi recently underwent a change, with Boombl4 becoming the new IGL. What do you think of their current roster and how do you think Boombl4 will be able to handle things?
ANGE1: This lineup is promising. Boombl4 will need at least a year to get used to the Tier-1 scene and he will grow with the team together. But, they are going about it the right way, taking the right decisions.
TE: Talking about India, what do you think the Indian scene needs to grow?
ANGE1: I think they need more tournaments like these to get more experience under their belt. I saw the Indian team playing and they were doing well. They just need to cut down some mistakes and mostly experience.
TE: How do you feel about the SG553 meta, the recent economy changes and what should Valve do in your opinion to make it more balanced?
ANGE1: It doesn’t change too much. For example, in Dota2, they just revamped the game in essence, with such a big update. In CSGO, there are little changes and I feel it is now nearly perfect. Krieg though, is still OP. Maybe, increasing the price to $3300 or $3500 should do the trick.
TE: Anything you would like to add and say to your fans?
ANGE1: Shoutout to the fans here in India and the people who made this tournament possible.
