sdy: “I look at this as a great experience to have, to be playing in the last Major”

We caught up with Viktor “sdy” Orudzhev at the European RMR B for the BLAST Paris Major to talk about his time standing in with NAVI, joining Monte and more!

Hugo “TheSwedishJoker” Nilsson Meier, BLIX.GG: Congratulations on winning your first game! You guys are a new team and quite a young one as well, what were the expectations like going into this game?

Viktor “sdy” Orudzhev: I can say that it was kind of mixed, but overall we believe in our game, our gameplan, game style, and how we play overall. The only problem that we have is a bit [with the] nerves, we let them come back because we didn’t play structurally well because [we were] a bit shaky, you know? It happens.

We are a new team, but this game is a good test, and I think we can go through this group pretty well if everything’s going to be the same.

BLIX: I noticed that three of you guys are Ukrainian, but Szymon “kRaSnaL” Mrozek and Mohammad “BOROS” Malhas don’t speak your language. What is the communication like inside the team?

sdy: We speak English in the team, and yeah, we communicate [in Ukrainian] only in clutches when we’re the only ones left. As three Ukrainians we can speak Ukrainian, but kRaSnaL [Szymon Mrozek] and BOROS [Mohammad Malhas] speak in English, so we speak English.

BLIX: I want to touch a little bit about NAVI, especially what happened towards the end. Did you think that you were going to stay and form a six-man lineup? What was the feeling like then for you?

sdy: I knew that I was going to leave because they want to play [with] six players at the Major but you can only register five and one substitute. So I don’t want to be the sixth player or the substitute at the Major. Right now I’m here, I’m grinding with Monte to play at the Major as I deserve, you know?

BLIX: Did you have any other offers outside of Monte? Because you were pretty outstanding in NAVI considering you had a pretty long break away from Tier-1 Counter-Strike.

sdy: There were some offers, yeah, but overall, I took this team because mostly it’s Ukrainian, and the second important part for me is I wanted to speak English in the game and have international players. Because if you learn this skill and practice your English, you have more opportunities to bring a lot of players from every region you can.

BLIX: You had quite different positions in NAVI while standing in. Have those positions changed now that you’re in a stable five-man lineup in Monte?

sdy: Yeah, right now I mostly have star positions on every map that we play on T and CT, so it’s pretty much comfortable for me to play.

BLIX: You’re not yet in tier-one like you were in NAVI. What’s the transition been like? Do you think it was harder to move from NAVI to Monte, rather than moving into NAVI?

sdy: To NAVI of course, it was very hard because it was [a] completely different approach to the game that they have, and I was not used to it. When I came here, I was already basically… I’m more like a mentor for the young players than it was for me in NAVI.

BLIX: How is it for you now, being the most experienced player in the team with Monte?

sdy: It feels nice because everybody listens to me and everybody respects me, doing what I’m doing for the team.

BLIX: I want to touch a little bit about Volodymyr “Woro2k” Veletnjuk and Monte being called out with cheating accusations. Does it affect the team knowing the accusations going on around him? How do you tackle it?

sdy: We’re just laughing about it because it’s ridiculous and it doesn’t mean anything.

BLIX: Valve recently released CS2, have you been able to play it yet? What do you think so far?

sdy: Yeah, I was playing it a bit, not much. I think it’s a good game, I like everything new, the new changes, and it will bring a lot of new players so the professional scene will grow as well with the game. So, I think it’s good!

BLIX: Have you noticed anything that you’d like to be changed before CS2 is officially released to the public this summer?

sdy: I think they have a problem with saturation, it’s kind of weird in the game, also small bugs and of course tick rates, tick rates need to be fixed.

BLIX: The coming tournaments, including this Major, will be on CS:GO. How will you guys divide your time between the two games? I suppose that you mostly focus on CS:GO now, but you don’t want to fall behind on CS2 when it inevitably releases.

sdy: We already have our spot in ESL Pro League which is going to be on CS2 so we’re feeling good there.

BLIX: Do you think it was the right time for Valve to release the CS2 Beta?

sdy: Instantly after the Major was the best option, in my opinion.

BLIX: This is the last CS:GO Major and you’ve been a part of the scene for quite a while. Do you feel a little bit more pressure knowing that this is your last chance to have your name on that elusive trophy?

sdy: No, there’s no pressure about it, it’s a good opportunity and I look at this as a great experience to have, to be playing in the last Major.

Feature Image Credit: BLAST/Michal Konkol