Interview With Na’Vi’s iM, Ahead of ESL Pro League S19

Ahead of ESL Pro League S19, I had the pleasure of interviewing Mihai “iM” Ivan from Natus Vincere. Here’s what we talked about.

1. Hello and congratulations on winning the Copenhagen Major! What can you tell me about the playoffs of the tournament? I know you had a rough stage 2 and were close to getting eliminated. But in the playoffs, you guys played amazing.

Yes, we had an excellent tournament and I feel great about it. When I saw the playoffs bracket, I knew we could get to the Grand Final. All of the match-ups were favorable to us, so I was very confident about our chances.

I wasn’t worried at all against Eternal Fire and G2 Esports. But even against FaZe Clan, the statistics slightly favored us. If we had to play against Team Spirit, the situation might have been very different because they had defeated us each time. Their playstyle seems to counter ours very well.

In practice, we had always had some problems with FaZe Clan and Team Vitality because of their play style. But we knew that FaZe Clan’s tactics could be countered, which we did.

2. What do you think allowed you to win against them?

Our calls were perfect. When we had to push we pushed. When we had to fall back, we fell back. Our entire strategy worked well.

We fcking won the major!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

— NAVI iM- (@iMeCSGO) March 31, 2024

3. When will s1mple come back? Do you think he’ll ask to be loaned to a different team until the end of the season? It’s pretty clear to me that your roster is playing well as it is at the moment.

I honestly don’t know. I have no information about him right now. We don’t know yet what he’s going to do.

4. What are your expectations at this event? Can Na’Vi finish in the top four?

We don’t have any expectations here. We usually set our goals during boot camps but this time we didn’t do one. After the Major, in order for us to spend some time with our families, we chose to train from home. Traditionally, we’ve always done boot camps but this time we made an exception.

We reviewed the Major, practiced what we had to practice to correct our mistakes, and are happy to compete in this tournament because of its format, which allows you to experiment a lot. You can take plenty of risks with little consequences.

5. Are you happy with the game’s current economy and map format? With so few rounds to play, would it not be better to give the losing team more money? Or perhaps the winner of the pistol round less money?

Yes, I think they’ll have to change something because the winner of the pistol rounds is currently winning half the map. But I’m not sure what would need to be done.

6. Who do you think will be the toughest team to beat in your group?

I think HEROIC and Complexity are tough teams to beat and of similar strength. But we will only encounter them in the upper bracket Final if everything goes well, so by then we’re already qualified for the playoffs.

7. How many weeks of vacation did you take after winning the Major?

Approximately two.

It’s time to watch the Champions vlog from the first CS2 Major.

🎥 https://t.co/dJ5PRoHAg3#CS2 #navination pic.twitter.com/sH2qY4zedO

— NAVI (@natusvincere) April 3, 2024

8. How many weeks of training did you have as a team before this tournament?

Around two and a half.

9. How do you think you performed as a team during this training?

When we train, the goal is not to win but to experiment. We won some matches and we lost some, but the end result is never relevant in such cases because it’s all about trying new tactics and figuring out what works for you.

10. Your team has adapted very quickly to CS2. How do you think is CS2 evolving? Do you think it has improved a lot since its release? Are you satisfied with its current state or is it still full of bugs?

I haven’t seen that many bugs so I’m satisfied with the game’s quality and believe that it’s on the right path. Some small balancing updates are probably scheduled for the rest of the year but overall, the game is perfectly playable now.

Alright. Ivan, thank you for the interview, and good luck at the tournament!

Header: PGL