Harsha Bandi, Overwatch World Cup and the 2020 Houston Outlaws
Harsha Bandi is a name that should be at the top of your watch-list for the 2020 Overwatch League Season. He first made a foot print on the Overwatch scene in 2017 hosting a podcast called Around the Watch with CaptainPlanet and PestoEnthusiast. He joined the San Francisco Shock at the onset of the League as an analyst in 2018. The following year he was named to the coaching staff of the 2019 runners-up, the Vancouver Titans. Comprised of some of the best talent from Contenders Korea, the Titans went on to become the first seed in the play-offs and currently hold the record for the longest winning streak at 19. The the Grand Finals of the 2019 OWL season Harsha and the Titans would go up against the San Francisco Shock but ultimately fall short of the championship.
As the Overwatch League off-season began, the Houston Outlaws picked up Harsha from the Vancouver Titans and offered him the position of Head Coach. Some might say that the 16th seed Houston Outlaws was a step down from the amazing run the Titans had earlier this year. However, Harsha is a Houston native and while on the subject of what we could expect from the 2020 season he said, “I’m someone who is used to winning,” and that he’s going into it with play-off expectations.
Harsha is referring to the performance of Team USA at the 2019 Overwatch World Cup this past weekend at Blizzcon 2019. He joined the team as an assistant coach alongside Jae “Junkbuck” Choi and head coach Aaron “Aero” Atkins. Shane “Rawkus” Flaherty, support player for the Outlaws and Team USA, said that it was the combined efforts all three coaches that helped them win. In his words, “It was like we couldn’t have won without literally all three of them. “
Below is our full interview with Harsha Bandi. We talked to him about Team USA’s gold medal win at the Overwatch World Cup. As well as his transition into Outlaws head coach, and what the future holds for his team and the 2020 OWL season.
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