No s1mple, no problem: W0nderful carries NAVI to CS2 Major semifinal

A brilliant showing from the young sniper.

W0nderful competing at the PGL Copenhagen CS2 Major playoffs.
Photo by Joao Ferreira via PGL

Natus Vincere have reached the semifinals of PGL Copenhagen CS2 Major on March 28 by defeating Eternal Fire, though, this time around, there was no s1mple to lead them. Instead, the team’s up-and-coming sniper, w0nderful, came to the rescue.

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Heading into the quarterfinal in the Royal Arena today, neither contenders were considered the favorites, but w0nderful’s stellar form and great performances from other NAVI members secured them a 2-0 victory over the Turkish squad. First, they took Mirage 16-13, and then closed things out on Inferno with a 13-9 score.

Aleksib screaming after winning a round in PGL Copenhagen CS2 Major playoffs.
Aleksib’s men come out victorious from their quarterfinal in Denmark. Photo by Joao Ferreira via PGL

The young AWPer was the best player on the server, leading the KD table with a phenomenal 48-33 ratio. While he was first and foremost consistent across the board, w0nderful also had a few standout highlights on his own, winning multiple clutches to keep NAVI in the lead. This includes his Ace on Banana and Inferno’s B side, where he singlehandedly claimed the round for his team.

Last October, w0nderful had some big shoes to fill as he was picked up by NAVI to play in place of s1mple, who took a break from competition. Since then, the Ukrainian legend announced his comeback and even stood in for Falcons at one event. But with w0nderful’s stellar form in Denmark, his potential return to NAVI’s main roster isn’t so certain.

With shaky results in CS2 as of late, NAVI were far from being favorites in the Copenhagen. Some people were even surprised to see them in top eight, which they achieved by beating teams like G2 Esports and paIN. But, on Saturday, they will have the chance to get one step closer to winning the title, as they will face either MOUZ or G2, depending on which team triumphs in the final quarterfinal on Friday.

Author
Image of Mateusz Miter
Mateusz Miter
Freelance Writer at Dot Esports. Mateusz previously worked for numerous outlets and gaming-adjacent companies, including ESL. League of Legends or CS:GO? He loves them both. In fact, he wonders which game he loves more every day. He wanted to go pro years ago, but somewhere along the way decided journalism was the more sensible option—and he was right.