7Sea Esports' Journey to BGIS 2021

7Sea Esports entered Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI) in July 2021, but the Indian esports organization has a long history of competing in PUBG Mobile with teams from across South Asia. Headquartered in India, 7Sea started its journey by operating teams based in Nepal and Bangladesh. However, earlier this year the organization expanded within the country following the arrival of BGMI by creating a new team composed of both experienced players and promising young talent.

Within the span of just six months, the team has come together beautifully to become one of the top BGMI contenders within the country, already managing to win multiple top-tier tournaments, going head-to-head against some of the biggest teams and making a name for itself.

AFK Gaming recently caught up with members of 7Sea's BGMI team learning more about the players, how the team came together, its journey so far, and what lies ahead as it prepares for the biggest BGMI tournament to take place so far - Battlegrounds Mobile India Series (BGIS) 2021.

7Sea Esports BGMI Team - A New Journey Begins

The BGMI roster of 7Sea came together in July with a mix of experienced players and upcoming talent, which has proven to be a successful combination. This lineup consists of the following members:

• Meet "Prince" Brahmbhatt - IGL

• Taha "Aladin" Khamkar - Filter

• Sarang "Sarang" Deka - Assaulter

• Harsh "Spraygod" Malik - Assaulter

• Rahul “Osmium” Sharma - Coach

Meet "Prince" Brahmbhatt has described the team as very “balanced”. This is because while he and Taha "Aladin" Khamkar have a lot of experience playing on LAN and understand the competition well, Sarang "Sarang" Deka and Harsh "Spraygod" Malik are emerging personalities that have the potential to be the best within the country.

How the 7Sea BGMI quartet came together

Despite being from diverse backgrounds and hailing from all over the country, the four players have come together really well, forming a tight bond which is reflected well in their gameplay. The journey of how they came together to play under 7Sea Esports is quite interesting, spanning almost an entire year while also being divided between pre- and post-BGMI timelines.

Prince and Spraygod have spent the most amount of time playing together, meeting each other for the first time in September 2020. Sarang was the next player to join the duo in May 2021 while they were playing for Indian Tigers (IT). The final member, Aladin, joined the trio directly in 7Sea following a successful run with GodLike Esports.

“I started my journey from IT, from there I went to 8Bit and then ELMT Esports. It was in September 2020 that Spraygod joined me in Team iNSANE. Together we performed really well, even managing to qualify for PMPL (PUBG Mobile Pro League),” said Prince “But the game got banned in India shortly after. During this time a lot of teams disbanded, but I got hints about the game coming back. So accordingly, I started preparing a team that would perform well after the game returned.”

Prince and Spraygod later approached Sarang and began competing with him under the banner of IT, without support from any organization. Following the release of BGMI in India, the trio began looking for a fourth player and found Aladin, who was freed up after GodLike disbanded. The rest, as they say, is history.

Hike towards BGIS 2021: Creating an identity

It did not take 7Sea BGMI too long to find their place within the roster, adjusting seamlessly, and working closely in tandem with each other to achieve success rather quickly.

“7Sea Esports has fulfilled all our needs so far like physical training, a cook to provide good food, stable internet, proper devices, and everything else. This is one reason why the team has performed consistently well, by having their basic needs fulfilled,” says Sarang, giving credit to the team’s management for the way this lineup has come together.

7Sea's first big achievement came in September 2021 with a runner-up finish at the Skyesports Championship 3.0 that featured a total prize pool of INR 26 Lakh. This was the first time that the team had created some serious buzz following a win.

“Before this event, we had assembled for the first time in a bootcamp. So that was a really big factor for us as it helped develop the team synergy even further. With team meetings now taking place face to face, the overall team development also improved. This is how we practiced for Skyesports Championship and our performance reflected our improvement,” said Aladin.

Building on this momentum, 7Sea Esports went on to secure a first-place finish at the Villager Esports Pro Invitational 2021, followed by a second-place showing at the OneShot Showdown. With this series of successes, the team started giving other top BGMI organizations a real challenge while also being counted amongst the top emerging teams within the country.

Prince shared an interesting anecdote about how 7Sea Esports ended up winning the Villager Esports Pro Invitational 2021.

But just when everything was looking great for the team, it experienced a sudden slump and all the momentum that had been built up in the past month seemed to disappear. According to Prince, 7Sea not finishing strong sometimes in certain tournaments was due to the team trying out new tactics from time to time.

He added that all attributes of a particular BGMI tournament are taken into consideration. If it is an ‘A-Tier’ event then 7Sea sticks to its best possible game plan and tries to win the tournament, otherwise, the team is open to taking a few chances and learning something new.

Sticking to this play style, the team took India Today’s Dangal very seriously to secure a first-place finish. This was considered a major comeback for the team as it won one of the most prestigious BGMI tournaments to take place this year. The victory helped it attain a huge boost in morale and confidence, and it went on to register consistently impressive performances across the next few tournaments, focussed on giving its best at the upcoming BGIS 2021.

7Sea BGMI training regime: Putting in the hardwork

All that the team has achieved so far has not come easily, players have practiced hard individually and as a team to reach their current standing. Sarang explained what a typical day of training looks like for the team.

“Our day starts around nine in the morning. The first thing we do is go jogging and do a bit of workout with the trainer, followed by breakfast, and then everyone disperses for a while to freshen up before meeting again to practice,” he says, while adding “We practice individually for a bit before official BGMI matches start from 12 p.m. onwards in the afternoon, going on till about nine in the night. We take small breaks in between for lunch and dinner, but this is how a regular day usually goes at the 7Sea bootcamp.”

With BGIS 2021 close at hand, the team has ramped up its practice schedule as it aims to secure the title. “After breakfast, we straight away start training these days which lasts for about 1 to 1.5 hours. This is followed by the team taking part in both 1v1 and 2v2 TDM [Team Deathmatch] matches,” says Spraygod, adding that “If the games go bad, then we make sure to practice more, but if they go well, then we go out for a walk and freshen up.”

While the players are busy doing their part to stay prepared at all times, Osmium, their coach, is also committed to improving the team even further. “Within the game, I make sure my team remains confident, motivated, and are aware of what their goal is at all times. To ensure this, I follow all their matches to see what went right and areas where they can still improve,” adds Osmium, noting that outside of the server he is like a friend to all the players to keep the atmosphere light and fun.

Thoughts about BGIS 2021

Overall the team is feeling really confident about the upcoming BGIS 2021. Despite taking a rough hit during the recently concluded BGIS 2021: The Grind, which was the official scrimmage session held for all the invited teams before the main event, 7Sea Esports is in high spirits and aiming for the championship title.

“The atmosphere of the team is really good. We just want to be the champions of BGIS 2021 for which we are practicing day and night. It is our one and only goal at this point in time,” expressed Spraygod when asked about the team’s current state of mind.

The players and coach collectively feel that they are comfortably in the top three BGMI teams of India, with the closest competitors being Team XO and GodLike Esports. While all of the players rated the team highly, Prince was astute in his judgment as he said that the team was good but not nearly there.

“Everything about my team is good right now, so I will rate them seven out of 10. We are a really good team that is performing well, but when I take a look at the level of competition on the international stage that is when I realize how much we still need to improve,” said Prince.

7Sea’s BGMI coach Osmium expressed complete confidence in the team’s ability to raise the BGIS 2021 trophy because he thinks that this balanced lineup gives it an edge against the competitors.

“Our team is very aggressive, so we play aggressively across all tournaments, keeping our kill points usually high. I don’t think any of the passive teams can end a game in the top two. Only those teams that are aggressive, who also balance their kill and placement points can achieve success. This is exactly what we are capable of achieving consistently and it automatically gives us an edge over our opponents,” he said.

What does the future hold?

7Sea’s BGMI team has already started planning and practicing for international tournaments. With one Indian team set to receive a special direct invite to PUBG Mobile Global Championship (PMGC) 2021: Grand Finals in January, the team has already started its preparations accordingly.

7Sea is also eagerly eyeing the 2022 Asian Games which will feature PUBG Mobile as a medal event. Though the tournament is set to take place in China around September of next year, the aim has already been set to represent India at this international fixture.

The fairly new 7Sea BGMI team with its mix of experienced players and untested talent has proven themselves to be amongst the best BGMI teams within the country in just six months. The team has already achieved a lot and shown great consistency, aiming for not only the BGIS 2021 trophy but also upcoming international competitions.