ZywOo, the second-best CS:GO player in the world in 2022 by HLTV, has survived the BLAST Paris Major Legends Stage and advanced to the playoffs, unlike s1mple and NiKo, the number one and fifth CS:GO pros in HLTV’s list last year.
This, combined with Cloud9’s Ax1Le and sh1ro’s absence from the event due to not qualifying, means that ZywOo will be the only 2022 top-five CS:GO pro in the world playing at the BLAST Paris Major playoffs at the Accor Arena.
Related: All CS:GO teams qualified for BLAST Paris Major playoffs
There are plenty of reasons why ZywOo is the only one that made it through. He and Vitality arrived for the BLAST Paris Major in peak form, as the team won IEM Rio 2023 in April and he was the MVP of the Brazilian event. And most impressively, ZywOo has so far maintained his level of play in the Major.
The French AWPer will arrive on the Champions Stage later this week after averaging a 1.38 rating and 1.59 K/D in the Legends Stage, according to HLTV. Vitality has set ZywOo up perfectly thus far with flashbangs and the necessary team play, like apEX and dupreeh going in front of him on T sides in order to tank damage and gain information.
While ZywOo has played well at the BLAST Paris Major Legends Stage and massively helped Vitality, it’s worth pointing out that he isn’t the only one pulling numbers. He’s had the assistance of Spinx (1.24 rating), and the Danish duo of Magisk and dupreeh also stepped up when necessary. Vitality, for example, were only able to pull through against Monte on May 14 because dupreeh, Magisk, and Spinx had a high impact as well.
G2 and NAVI weren’t necessarily playing badly ahead of the Major, but they didn’t arrive nearly as sharp as Vitality and Heroic, who were the only tier one teams that qualified for playoffs without a scare. The BLAST Paris Major has delivered plenty of upsets since the qualifier in April and the upsets carried on in France. Tier two teams like Monte and GamerLegion qualified for the playoffs with a 3-1 record in the Legends Stage in sharp contrast to G2 and NAVI’s struggles.
The reason for so many upsets isn’t clear yet, but it could be related to what ZywOo said in an interview with HLTV on May 14. In the French superstar’s opinion, the smaller teams want it more than the big teams, and you can feel it by the way they’re playing with confidence and screaming after getting rounds.
That said, Vitality and ZywOo will have to keep their game on point in order to have a good chance to win the BLAST Paris Major. Other superteams like Heroic and FaZe Clan secured their spots at the Champions Stage, and Monte and GamerLegion showed they can defeat anyone in the world as well.
