Mumbai: The highly anticipated draws for all Esports titles at the ongoing Asian Games 2022 have been officially announced with India's leading Street Fighter V: Champion Edition athletes set to commence their campaign against Saudi Arabia and Vietnam on 26 September.

The country’s experienced athlete, Mayank Prajapati (MiKeYROG) will go head to head against T.F. Rajikhan (Taloobreaker) of Saudi Arabia while his teammate, Ayan Biswas (AYAN01), will be up against K.H.C Nguyen (Shin) of Vietnam to kick off their respective campaigns. Both athletes will begin the tournament in the Round of 32 which will be contested in the double-elimination format

Reflecting on the tournament commencing, Mayank Prajapati stated, "The road to the Asian Games has been challenging, but now that the tournament is upon us the feeling is surreal. We have left no stone unturned in our preparation for the title and eagerly await to take on our opponents. I would like to thank ESFI for their invaluable support in terms of providing us with the best possible equipment and coaching to help us perform at the highest level,"

A total of 35 notable athletes from 22 countries will be battling it out for a medal in Street Fighter V: Champion Edition. All matches will be conducted in the best-of-three (BO3) format and the loser bracket final and grand final will be played in a best-of-seven (BO7) format.

"Getting the opportunity to represent India at such a prestigious international tournament in Street Fighter for an official medal is a sign of how far Esports has come. Competing at the Asian Games 2022 is more than a personal achievement for us as the entire nation's hopes are on our shoulders. We hope to make the country proud with our performances and win a historic medal at the tournament," commented Ayan Biswas.

Mayank and Ayan earned their spots for the Asian Games 2022 by reaching the finals of the National Esports Championships (NESC) organized by the Esports Federation of India (ESFI) last year. The two players are well-renowned names in the Indian Street Fighter V community having dominated the game for a long period.

“Now that the draws have been announced, we are confident about our medal prospects in all the titles. Our Street Fighter athletes who have left a lasting impact on the Indian Street Fighter community are all set to showcase their skills against the continent’s best talent on the international stage. Having witnessed their tireless training and competitive spirit, we believe they have what it takes to excel and are confident in their abilities to make the nation proud,” said Esports Federation of India director Lokesh Suji and vice president of the Asian Esports Federation (AESF) Lokesh Suji.

One of the country's top sports and Esports communication agencies, Artsmith-Concepts & Visions, will continue its support to the Esports Federation of India as its official communication partner.

Having been featured as a demonstration event in 2018, Esports will be making its full-fledged debut as an official medal sport at the Asian Games 2022. The Esports event will be held in China Hangzhou Esports Centre from September 24 to October 2, with India participating in four of the seven total titles: DOTA 2, EA Sports FC Online, League of Legends, and Street Fighter V: Champion Edition.

India’s supremely talented EA Sports FC Online athletes will kick off the country’s Esports campaign as Charanjot Singh takes on Liu Jiacheng of China and Karman Singh faces A.A. Faqeehi of Bahrain on September 24.

Following EA Sports FC Online, the nation’s League of Legends which has been seeded directly to quarter-finals will commence its campaign against the winner of the group comprising Japan, Palestine, and Vietnam on September 27.

The country’s DOTA 2 team has been drawn in Group A alongside Kyrgyzstan and Philippines with their group matchups scheduled to take place on September 29. The winner of the group will then square off against Nepal on September 30.