Asian Games 2022: Process to select Indian esports team announced
The Indian esports athletes will compete in multiple tournaments in March and April to decide who represents India at the Asian Games in September.
The Esports Federation of India (ESFI) has revealed the players’ selection procedure for gaming titles at the Asian Games 2022 in Hangzhou, China.
Esports will be making a debut at the Asian Games, with medals being awarded in eight games.
The Indian esports team for Asian Games 2022 will be selected through the Road to Asian Games (RDAG) program, starting with the pan-India open qualifiers in the first week of March.
All qualified players and teams will then progress to the playoffs stage from March 20 onwards. The list will be narrowed down in further rounds and the final names of esports athletes representing India at the Asian Games 2022 will be confirmed on April 10.
Later, the national teams of all countries will compete in the RDAG Regionals between April and July to determine their seeding at the upcoming Games in September.
Post selection, the ESFI plans to prepare the Indian esports athletes for the continental showpiece by providing mental and physical training, along with coaching, to all players who made the cut.
Esports was a demonstration event at the 2018 Asian Games where India’s Tirth Mehta won a bronze medal in Hearthstone. FIFA gamer Ankur Dhiwakar also competed at the quadrennial showpiece.
The Commonwealth esports championships will also be played later this year alongside the Commonwealth Games 2022.