Antidote Reflects on Excali's Return to Velocity Gaming

Recently, Sabyasachi "Antidote" Bose discussed Karan "Excali" Mhaswadkar's move to join Velocity Gaming after both players had played for Enigma Gaming. Antidote suggested that Excali may be seeking to redeem himself by joining Velocity Gaming, which he perceives to be in a currently weakened state, and help restore it to its full strength.

Antidote added that he was not angry but sad with Excali’s decision and stated that he had no ill will towards the latter. In fact, he added that he thought it was “a very good decision from Excali.”

Excali's decision to rejoin Velocity Gaming seen as opportunity for redemption by Antidote

Antidote and Excali, have had a long history playing together on different teams in the professional Valorant scene. They first teamed up with Velocity Gaming in July 2020, where they played together until April 2021, when Excali left the team to pursue other opportunities. However, in January 2022, the two players were reunited when Excali joined Enigma Gaming, where Antidote was serving as the in-game leader. But their time together was short-lived, as Excali left Enigma Gaming to once again join Velocity Gaming earlier this month. In a related move, Antidote also left Enigma Gaming and joined Orangutan Gaming on January 21st.

In a recent livestream, Antidote explained that Velocity Gaming has a special place in his heart as it holds a lot of memories and emotions associated with it. He said that Velocity Gaming is like a family for him and all the players who have played for Velocity Gaming, be it ex-players or current players. He also revealed that when Excali received an offer from Velocity Gaming, Excali was hesitant to tell him about his departure from the team as he was unsure how Antidote and the rest of the team would react. However, Antidote emphasized that the bond they shared was pure and that he would have made the same decision if he were in Excali’s place. “The thing is that we have been playing together for years, and the bond we share is very pure. So, if I were in his place, it would have been the same for me,” he said.

When Excali told Antidote about receiving an offer from Velocity Gaming, Antidote initially thought it was a joke. But when Excali mentioned that he had a meeting with Velocity Gaming’s owner Manoj “Sentinel” Kashyap, well-known as Anna, that he was going to Velocity Gaming, Antidote realized the truth. He stated that when he realized that Excali was parting his way with him, he was not angry but rather sad. He acknowledged that it would be awkward for him to play against Excali on the same server in the future. 

Antidote emphasized that there is no ill will towards Excali and that he wishes him all the best. “After realizing this, I wasn’t angry, but I was sad because how could I play against him? It was a big shock for me; how everything would turn out. We had a great thing going, everything was set, and that sadness was still there. When we play against each other on the same server, it will be very awkward. But we can’t do anything; this is professional esports,” he said.

Lastly, Antidote acknowledged that Excali had previously left Velocity Gaming at a vulnerable time and received backlash for it. He explained that Excali saw this as an opportunity to redeem himself, regain his fan base, and perform well for Velocity Gaming, rejoining the team when they were also in a vulnerable state. Antidote stated that he believes Excali joined Velocity Gaming because he felt that he left the team in a bad state and that they were in a similar situation once again. So Excali may be able to join and bring them back to a better position. He added, “I think it’s a very good decision from Excali.”