Riot Games has announced a provisional suspension for Singaporean VALORANT pro, Wong “JayH” Jia Heng, on suspicion of match-fixing. The player most recently competed in the VALORANT Challengers League (VCL) 2024 Malaysia/Singapore: Split 1 with Disguised. However, according to the statement, the player is under suspicion of match-fixing for a tournament that happened before the VCL MY/SG Split 1. In this article, we delve into the statement released by the tournament organizer and the response by JayH.
Image Credits: Riot Games
Jayh is receiving provisional suspension from VALORANT esports due to match-fixing
JayH has been a key figure in the VALORANT Challengers League (VCL) Malaysia and Singapore, currently playing on the Disguised VALORANT lineup. He has left his mark in the esports world with his time at Bleed Esports and Ninjas in Pyjamas. Under Disguised, he played a pivotal role in helping the team secure the third spot during the VCL Split 1 Malaysia Singapore, a significant achievement for the organization owned by the renowned content creator Disguised Toast.
On April 30, however, the official Twitter account for VALORANT Malaysia and Singapore posted a statement announcing the provisional suspension of JayH due to suspicion of match-fixing. It revealed that the player was being suspended until further notice from all Riot Games events and third-party tournaments pending a review of the allegations.
Two aspects of the statement have to be highlighted. The first is that it mentions a match-fixing allegation before joining the VALORANT Challengers 2024. While the timeline isn’t provided for the alleged match-fixing, this could have been either the VCT China Ascension or the qualifying phase of the VCL Split 1.
The second part to note is that JayH has received a provisional suspension, not a complete one. This means the player is suspended until proven innocent by the tournament organization and Riot Games.
Image Credits: Disguised
Another point to note is a similar case of match-fixing that took place in VCL Split 1 MY/SG. On March 24th, the official Twitter account for VALORANT MY/SG put a statement out, cornering “Vonce” Chew from Team PDF, temporarily suspending him due to match-fixing. The surprising aspect of this ban was that it was only for 30 days, during which no matches occurred in the tournament.
JayH denies the allegations
Immediately after the initial statement, JayH responded by saying that he hasn’t indulged in match-fixing or any activity around it. The VALORANT pro also added that before the statement was put out, he wasn’t reached out for details about the investigation.
“Hi, any VCL MYSG personnel, can contact me, please, I don’t matchfix and have never participated in any activity involving it. Also, before putting this statement out, I wasn’t informed about any ongoing investigation or verified anything on my end. (sic)”
It must be stated that if a player is alleged to have matched fixed in other sports, they receive a complete suspension. A provisional suspension is unconventional, as the player is banned until proven innocent. An allegation similar to match-fixing will affect a player’s reputation indefinitely. Until now, there is no information on the exact timing of the alleged match-fixing or JayH’s role in the situation. Riot should issue a clarification after the conclusion of its investigation.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login