Ninjas in Pyjamas benches most of CS2 starting roster after missing Major

A roster shuffle in Counter-Strike usually gets going after the conclusion of a Major. But when one of the most recognizable names in the game’s history fails to qualify for the first CS2 Major, a change has to happen.

Ninjas in Pyjamas management announced today that Kristian “k0nfig” Wienecke, Patrick “es3tag” Hansen and Daniil “headtr1ck” Valitov have all been moved to the bench, confirming earlier reports. Additionally, coach Daniel “djL” Narancic and analyst Thomas “haste” Dyrensborg have been let go from NiP.

Three academy players on the Young Ninjas roster in maxster, Silence, and BluePho3nix will stand in for the upcoming BLAST Premier Spring Showdown, with general manager THREAT temporarily returning to the head coach role. The three youngsters will play alongside longtime starting player Frederik “REZ” Sterner and recently brought in IGL Alejandro “alex” Masanet.

In a lengthy letter addressed to fans, the members of NiP management said consistency and AWP usage were major areas of concern with the roster. The letter also mentioned there was an unwillingness to initially part with the core players needed to retain an RMR spot.

In a follow-up post, NiP’s director of esports Erik Wendel said he was “fascinated by the amount of people celebrating [the team] bombing out of the RMR, not only the amount but also the size and importance of some people participating in it.” K0nfig shared similar sentiments last week when NiP were eliminated, calling the amount of hate “unreal.”

As a whole, NiP has struggled to find consistency in competitive Counter-Strike since the legendary Major-winning roster of the early 2010s departed. One of the highlights of this struggle was the massive transfer move for multiple-time Major winner dev1ce in 2021, who only played less than a year with the Ninjas.