As the BLAST.tv Austin Major enters its decisive Stage 3, one of the most experienced and respected Turkish players in Counter-Strike history, İsmailсan “XANTARES” Dörtkardeş, enters the battlefield with a new banner but the same core. After years with Eternal Fire, XANTARES and his teammates are now competing under Aurora, and despite the change in name, the mission remains the same: compete at the highest level and represent Turkey with pride.
We caught up with XANTARES ahead of Aurora’s opening match, a tough best-of-one against FaZe Clan, to talk about surprises at the Major, Chinese upsets, his confidence on Anubis, and how it feels to carry a nation on his shoulders.
“Chinese teams have played insane CS”
The surprises of Stage 2 didn’t go unnoticed by the Turkish star. For XANTARES, it was a clear signal that no region can be underestimated anymore.
– “Yeah, feeling nice. We watched all games. A lot of surprises, especially from Chinese people – they just play insane CS,” he said. “Also some Brazilian teams, they made a lot of surprises against very good opponents. It’s always like this in the Major, they make a lot of surprises.”
China’s sudden rise in this Major cycle has turned heads, and for a veteran like XANTARES, it was a reminder of how unpredictable and wide open the current CS2 scene really is.
“We are very confident right now”
Aurora opens Stage 3 against FaZe, one of the tournament’s most experienced and stacked rosters. But rather than feel daunted, XANTARES exudes calm determination.
– “We are very confident right now. We bootcamped in Serbia, and we already talked about what we need to do against them,” he said. “B01 is better for us. I think we have a better map pool against them.”
Asked about potential map picks, especially FaZe’s likely ban of Anubis, XANTARES didn’t hesitate.
– “I think we are the best Anubis team in the world,” he said, laughing. “But they will ban it, of course.”
“We expect to make playoffs – and get trophies”
For all the talk of underdog runs and surprise performances, XANTARES made one thing clear. Aurora is here to win.
– “Right now, we expect to make playoffs for sure. And also get some trophies. We will do everything to make it.”
Despite being picked up by a new organization earlier this year, the structure of the team has stayed largely intact. Coach, manager, and players all remain the same, and the vision is sharper than ever.
“It’s very good to represent Turkey”
Much like TheMongolz for Mongolia, XANTARES and Aurora carry the symbolic weight of Turkish Counter-Strike. While that might bring pressure for some, for him it’s a source of pride.
– “I enjoy it a lot actually. I always wanted to play for my country,” he said. “Every time, I made my choice about it. It’s very good actually. Feels nice.”
Watch the full interview with XANTARES below, where he goes deeper on Aurora’s strategy, the Turkish CS scene, and how he plans to take down some of the biggest names in the world.
