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Talon Esports played their first game in VCT Pacific 2023 on Sunday, March 26, 2023, against Team Secret. After a promising showing at LOCK//IN, they were riding a wave of expectations. Although they fell slightly short, losing the series 1-2, it is just the beginning of the tournament and there is a long way to go.
Patiphan "Patt" Chaiwong made a comeback to the VCT after 471 days under the Talon banner. He played on the first two maps of the series, sitting it out on Fracture to make space for Sushiboys. Boasting both talent and a vibrant personality, the Valorant esports scene is only richer with players like him.
Talon Esports' Patt, a.k.a. Patiphan, talks about match against Detonation FocusMe in VCT Pacific League and more
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In an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda Esports, Patt discussed being back in Valorant, not having to play the Duelist role, Talon's revolving rosters for different maps, and more.
Q: How does it feel to be back in the VCT?
Patt: It's really good to be back. I wanted to for a while but couldn’t because of several factors. The last time I played was back in VCT Champions 2021, and a lot has changed since then in the game.
Q: Last time we saw you play in the VCT, you were a full-fledged Duelist main. It's great to see you in different roles. How comfortable do you feel with the transition?
Patt: I have always wanted to talk about this. I was never a Duelist main. Back in X10, I was the best aimer on the team, so I was forced to play Duelists.
I have dapr (currently in G2 Esports) as my idol figure. I love to play the second entry. I was never born to play Duelists. I like to play Agents like Cypher and Skye, but no one has ever seen me play those roles as I was forced to play Duelists.
Q: Although many VCT teams have more than five members, they mostly don't switch rosters between maps. How easy or difficult is it to switch up rosters based on maps with a six-man roster?
Patt: It is kinda hard because since we came to Korea we only had, like, five full days of scrims because of the amount of content that we have to do. In the five days, we only got to play 20-25 maps. We got very little scrims practice compared to Brazil.
On some maps, like Fracture, we have to play the same composition because we didn’t get to switch things up. The opponent got to watch our VODs, and they knew exactly what we were going to do
Q: You saw the team play Fracture from the outside. What do you think the team could have done better in the game?
Patt: I mean, they counter-stratted us. As I was saying, they had prepared for our strats and ended up dominating us. We will be better next time.
Q: About the Sage pick itself, although it is not completely unseen, it's definitely not a meta pick especially as a replacement for Killjoy on Ascent. What was the mindset going in with Sage for this matchup?
Patt: In scrims, we did pretty well. In fact, we did really well (with this composition). But in the first match, we were a bit nervous. Our comms and pacing were off. I had to control mid-round fights, so I take full responsibility for our loss.
Q: How did losing your map pick in your first game in the tournament affect your mental state going into the second map?
Patt: I don’t feel anything. It is just like another day in the office for me. Every LAN game is the same for me, so it doesn’t affect me at all. With the team, I did feel the energy drop a bit and I had to cheer them up. We did pretty okay on the second map, I guess.
Q: Team Secret’s Icebox composition has about as much utility as it is possible to have on a team, including the KAY/O, which could limit your utility usage on certain occasions. How did you try countering it?
Patt: I mean, we knew that they would like to play off of the KAY/O knife, so we decided to just take it and just gunfight them.
Q: Did you have any specific expectations from your first VCT match in a very long time, and were there any unexpected things that you encountered that threw you off over the course of the series?
Patt: I never underestimate Team Secret because I always believed that they could be the best team in APAC even two years ago. Now with additions like invy, they look amazing. That guy is a freaking monster! He is really good, and so is Jremy. The team has the potential to be the best in the region.
Q: You play against T1 in your next VCT Pacific match. Any particular player you look forward to playing against from the squad and why?
Patt: I would say carpe, I guess. He was playing in the Overwatch League like me last year, but I never got to play him there.
Q: Talon is a team of vibrant personalities. How are you and the boys enjoying your stay in Seoul on account of VCT Pacific League?
Patt: We had a ton of time as we had to do content. I was dressed up as an owl warrior, I don’t know, it was a content thing. I got to hold a sword and everything. I used to live in Korea for seven months, three years ago. I have been on this stage before, and it felt like home. I used to play pretty well back then (as well), so it hasn’t been like a debut as people in this place know me. It felt really good.
