S1mple disappointed by NaVi defeat

Only two games in, Oleksandr “s1mple” Kostyljev is already a bit disappointed with NaVi’s new lineup, as the team’s defeat against Heroic in the BLAST Premier Fall Groups 2023 was tough. As a result, the Ukrainian superstar shared a message on his Twitter account where he demonstrated behavior that former teammates and the community are somewhat used to.

After NaVi’s loss to Heroic last Sunday, July 16, NaVi’s star AWPer and one of the best players in the history of the game, s1mple, called his team’s performance “trash.”. Moreover, the Ukrainian’s movements inside the server in the match against Heroic clearly showed his frustration.

S1mple calls NaVi’s performance “trash”

As we mentioned, NaVi fell short against Heroic in the second match of Group B of the BLAST Premier Fall Groups 2023. After two maps and a masterful performance by Martin “stavn” Lund and Casper “cadiaN” Møller, the Danes overcame NaVi’s now international lineup with a crushing score of 2-0. As a result of this defeat, s1mple, on his Twitter account, shared a thought where he said:

“Trash mistakes = trash result.”

In addition, the Ukrainian AWPer said that “apparently,” this new lineup needs more time to be 100% composed.

Trash mistakes = trash result, ggwp @heroicgg apparently we need more time #navination

— Sasha (@s1mpleO) July 16, 2023

On the second map, when Heroic was close to winning the series, we could observe on the official Twitch stream s1mple making circling moves on the map. Clearly showing how frustrated and disappointed the Ukrainian was at that moment of the match.

As mentioned, NaVi could do nothing against the #1 in the world, Heroic, as they fell on Mirage by 9-16 and on Inferno by 10-16. While this is only the second match of this new international lineup for NaVi, we can say that, with the quality of the players, they have not started on the right foot. Besides, it is no secret that the victory against Astralis in the first match of Group B was not very devastating either.

NaVi makes a key mistake in Inferno

While it’s true that we don’t know the exact point where NaVi completely dislocated, there is one specific round where the team seems to have thrown in the towel. In round 22, Aleksi “Aleksib” Virolainen had complete control of Banana, so executing on the B Site made the most sense to try to stay alive in the series. However, the other four NaVi players remain in Apartments and get annihilate by Heroic’s defense.

While NaVi could win the next three rounds in a row, this round scarred the players, especially s1mple, who did not look comfortable in the game.

NaVi has a slow start

This new lineup has a lot of work to do to be 100% in sync and thus stand up to all the teams at the highest competitive level. For now, the Ukrainian squad does not seem to be at its best, as they suffered against a new-look Astralis and were completely crushed by Heroic.

On the other hand, the mental factor is taking its toll on s1mple, who had a Rating of 0.79 in this BO3, the second lowest this year for the Ukrainian this season.

Of the five players, only their new IGL, Aleksib, had a positive rating in this series against Heroic. There is no doubt that he has been showing a great level of play since joining NaVi. On the other hand, the NaVi community and fans are not happy with s1mple’s attitude, as they have only played two BO3 series at the highest competitive level, and it is completely normal that players like Justinas “jL” Lekavicius and Ivan “iM” Mihai are still adjusting to the new team.

You’ve only been playing together for like 7 days, don’t stress it – I’m sure you’ll all be a great team again in no time!

— Kasper Madsen (@ztpure) July 16, 2023

NaVi will face BIG in their next match with the mission to stay alive in the tournament. In addition, to have their revenge against Heroic in the Group B Grand Final. Also, let’s remember that the winner of the Group qualifies directly to the BLAST Premier Fall Finals, while the rest of the teams will fight for the other three places in the Play-In Stage.

Header: Stefan Petrescu | PGL