Rare Atom takes out Trash from CS2 roster

Rare Atom has dropped Aojoe ‘Trash‘ Tian from its Counter-Strike 2 (CS2) roster a month after being moved to the bench.

The announcement comes after the Chinese esports organisation signed Junbing ‘Tiger’ Zhen in July.

Trash first joined Rare Atom in June after the organisation parted ways with HaoWen ‘somebody‘ Xu. The player competed at a handful of regional and international events, taking victory at GangKui Cup Season 1.

Despite showing signs of promise, Trash struggled in Rare Atom’s appearance at FISSURE Playground 1, resulting in the team bowing out of the tournament with defeats to PaiN Gaming and 3DMAX.

“After thorough communication and friendly negotiation between the club and the player, Trash has officially left the team,” read a bilibili statement from Rare Atom.

Before Trash departed, the team secured qualification for the Perfect World CS Challenge Series 1 event. Taking place from August 29th to 31st, the six-team event will see teams compete for a share of a ¥350,000 CNY (~£36,323) prize pool and Valve Regional Standings (VRS) points.

Rare Atom is one of several Chinese teams that have begun showcasing the skills required to earn a place in Tier 1 tournaments. In April, it competed at PGL Astana, earning a top-14 placement after ending the group stage with a 1-3 win-to-loss record.

Since then, it has continued to string together solid performances in online and offline matches to qualify for other events and to win regional competitions.

The team is currently competing in Asia’s first ESL Challenger League Season 50 cup of the season. On August 26th, it faces off against Lynn Vision in the Grand Final, with the winner securing a place at the regional finals taking place in November. The winning team from the regional finals will qualify for ESL Pro League Season 23.