Minutes after lifting the BLAST.tv Austin Major trophy in Texas last night, William “mezii” Merriman stopped by the Pley microphone for a chat about winning his first Major, apEX’s masterclass last night, and resetting after losing map one.
– I have no words, mezii told Pley.
– It felt so far away after that first map. I have no words. It feels incredible to be standing here as a UK player, just being on this stage and winning a Major — it’s incredible.
Strong reset needed
Despite entering the final as massive favorites, Vitality were on the back foot early as The MongolZ stormed through Mirage to take a 1-0 lead. From there, it took a mental reset and a quick response to turn the tide.
We asked mezii how they made it work.
– Just the way we started Dust2. Everything started to click. It was kind of similar to MOUZ yesterday — after we lost the second map, we went in and started well. We could feel things were clicking. We knew we were playing super well, and as a team, that’s the main thing.
– When we play like this — like we did on Dust2 and Inferno — there’s not really any teams that can stop us. That’s down to the foundation of the team, our DNA, and the way we like to play. I think we really made sure we did that well on the last two maps.
Praising apEX
One of the big stories last night was Dan “apEX” Madesclaire’s grand final performance. The French captain often finds himself at the bottom of the scoreboard, but against The MongolZ, he topped the server.
It was something mezii also highlighted, giving him big praise when speaking with us.
– I mean, he definitely wanted that third Major. I don’t think I’ve said “you’re insane, Dan” that many times in a game. Every single time, the clutches, the multi-kills — it was insane.
– I’m so happy for him as well. We as players know how much he wants this and how great of a captain he is. He puts so much time into the game, so much to help us as individuals. He deserves this — after all the travel, the practice, the competing.
If there were a documentary about this run, what would the title be?
– Oh, that’s a tough question. Something along the lines of Legacy or something. This team, the way we’ve played and cemented a legacy, an era. It’s incredible with the streak going into the Major.
– Like I said to you previously, it would be nice to keep this streak going until the end — and we did it. Of course, after the first loss in the best-of-one stage, we’ve kept it going. This era we have now — it’s the Vitality era.
There must be something with Legacy in the title.
– They [Legacy] were the guys that slapped us in the face and made sure we woke up.
And thank you to them — we did. We woke up after that first BO1… and here we are.
What’s the plan for tonight?
– Definitely one or two drinks. Maybe a few more, I’m not sure. We’ll see where the night goes. We’re definitely going to enjoy it and celebrate as we should. This season has been the most special season of CS that’s ever happened. It’s incredible what we’ve achieved, and tonight’s going to be a good celebration.
You can watch the entire interview with mezii below.
