Team Vitality has secured their third consecutive title of the year following a convincing 3-0 victory over Natus Vincere at BLAST Open Rotterdam. The win marks a significant milestone for the roster, extending their active map win streak to an impressive 22 in a row. Following the grand final, Vitality head coach Rémy “XTQZZZ” Quoniam spoke about the team’s dominant form, their tactical innovations, and the individual performances that led to the trophy.
A new trick on Anubis
The series featured a highly competitive map on Anubis, which tested Vitality’s resilience. Despite NAVI’s strong reads and heavy presence on the B-site, Vitality maintained their composure.
“They had a pretty good read in my opinion,” XTQZZZ explained when discussing the final moments of the map. “But the pressure, I don’t think so. We felt comfortable. We thought that at some point we’ll take the last.”
One of the standout moments on Anubis was a creative triple boost on the A-site, which allowed Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut to secure a crucial elimination on NAVI’s AWPer, Ihor “w0nderful” Zhdanov. When asked about the origin of the play, XTQZZZ admitted it was recently acquired from a practice session.
I will be completely honest. I don’t remember the opponent so sorry for them but we did a practice two weeks ago on Anubis… and someone killed us,” the coach revealed. “We were like oh, behind the smoke, and then we didn’t see any T1 team using it so far. So it was time to use it.
The 22-map win streak
Vitality’s 22 consecutive map wins have sparked discussions about the team’s current invincibility. However, XTQZZZ dismissed this narrative and maintained a grounded perspective.
No, I don’t want to say that because I don’t know how many of the times we’ve had last 22 maps. I think three or four at least,” he stated. “So, no, no, no. We don’t think of that. We were just thinking about playing good. That’s it.
Addressing whether opponents are changing their playstyles due to Vitality’s intimidating form, the coach acknowledged that some teams might alter their game, but praised their grand final opponents for staying true to their identity. “I think NAVI play as usual. I think they respect their plan. They had some good plans today so no I don’t think so.”
Standout Individual Performances
The BLAST Open Rotterdam final showcased the depth of Vitality’s roster. Players like Shahar “flameZ” Shushan, William “mezii” Merriman, and Robin “ropz” Kool all delivered highly impactful performances. XTQZZZ highlighted ropz specifically, noting his desire to prove himself after a challenging start to the season.
I think for him it was also important because the beginning of season was not the best for him. He lost confidence. He was sick as well in Cluj,” XTQZZZ noted. “So he wanted to prove guys I’m a finals guy.”
Actually, ropz ended up winning the tournament MVP award, which was a surprise. The Estonian played an amazing Grand Final, even catching his own coach slightly off guard before the official announcement. Prior to learning the result, XTQZZZ joked about the team’s internal expectations:
I don’t know. flameZ got MVP or is ZywOo, because it’s a joke between us actually on the team. I think it’s ZywOo again.
You can see the full interview with the French coach here.
