huNter- will miss IEM Rio 2026 due to a broken leg

G2 Esports have announced a forced roster change ahead of the старт of IEM Rio 2026 in Counter-Strike 2. Bosnian player Nemanja “huNter-” Kovač will not be able to compete at the tournament because of a broken leg. The club and the esports player himself shared the news on social media.

For the duration of the tournament, huNter-’s place in the main lineup will be taken by Vilius “tAk” Keserauskas, who represents G2’s academy roster, G2 Ares. For the young player, his debut at this level will come in the team’s very first match of the championship - against Gentle Mates, with the game set to begin on April 13.

According to huNter-, the injury turned out to be fairly serious, though he expects to recover in time for the next events. The player did not go into detail about how exactly he sustained the injury, but confirmed that it involves not only a small bone fracture, but also a severe ligament sprain.

“Someone put an apple in my ankle. Jokes aside, it’s sad that I won’t be able to travel to Brazil and help my team, play in front of an amazing crowd, but I hope I will recover quickly and be ready for the next challenges. My guys will give it their all. I’m sure tAk will show that he is the future. By the way, the bone cracked a little, and the ligaments are badly stretched. Thank you all for the warm messages, and see you soon.”
- Nemanja “huNter-” Kovač

As a result, G2 have become the second team heading into IEM Rio 2026 with roster-related changes. Earlier, Team Spirit reported that coach Sergey “hally” Shavaev would miss the tournament due to health issues.

Hally to Miss IEM Rio and PGL Astana — Spirit to Field S0tF1k as Stand-In Coach

IEM Rio 2026 will take place in Brazil from April 13 to 19. Teams will compete for $1 million, and for G2 the upcoming event will become a serious test of roster depth from the very first matches.