After a great performance throughout the tournament in Brazil, the AWPer is excited for Paris Major.
Even though Vitality had a rough start in IEM Rio, the team was able to conquer its way to the tournament finals thanks to monstrous performances of Mathieu "ZywOo" Herbaut. And, according to him, the interaction with the crowd has something to do with it.
The French AWPer is the highest-rated player in the tournament, with a 1.31 rating. Shortly before his match against Heroic, ZywOo talked with esports.gg about his performance and also about expectations of the BLAST.tv Paris Major.
"It was good, it was great to play in front of them (the crowd). When we did the walk-in, I had goose bumps. I felt like "I am ready to play now." So yeah, the best feeling of my life. I'm ready for the next match, cause it will be even better."
Before winning the Grand Final against Heroic, Vitality had to overcome a 12-3 score against Cloud9 in the Semi-finals. With FURIA eliminated from the tournament, Brazilians decided that Vitality was the one that deserved their support. And ZywOo makes it clear that they were essential for that win and the title.
"This crowd is amazing. I think that the power of the crowd gave us the strength to come back against Cloud9. And today (finals), the power of the crowd gave us everything. We never thought about losing this game."
Vitality, ZywOo and the home Major
After 19 Majors, France will receive its first CS:GO Major.T he Paris tournament will be the last one in the CS:GO era. For ZywOo the scenario is ideal, as he will get to play in front of his home crowd.
Even after describing the feeling of playing in the Jeunesse as the best feeling in his life, for him, there is no doubt that the Paris Major will be even better.
"I think this one will be even better. I've been waiting for this one for six months now and is getting closer. I want to play in front of my family, my friends, and the French crowd, it will be great, everyone will be there. I'm excited to be here also. Is not like I'm saying I don't want to be in Rio, it's insane, but I want more to be in Paris."
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ZywOo is ready to win a CS:GO Major
Even though he is young and CS:GO is coming to an end, ZywOo has already been crowned two times as the best player in the world. Still, one thing is missing from a player of his caliber: The AWPer has never won a Major in the five that he played in.
The 22-year-old player shared that this is the moment for him [to win]. Alongside playing in his country, he believes that the current Vitality squad is playing very well and they have to seize the momentum they built. And their performance in IEM Rio shows that they are, indeed, thriving.
"I can say is a good moment for me to play a CS:GO Major in Paris. Because we have a great team we are playing well together and also it will be the last Major of CS:GO. So I think this is the best moment for me to win it."
If IEM Rio 2023 told something to the scenario, is that Vitality has someone that maybe can keep up with ZywOo. Lotan "Spinx" Giladi topped the board during the group stage, and even though the AWPer ended up as the MVP of the tournament, the Israeli showed that he is also a powerhouse.
Still, ZywOo didn't missed the opportunity to joke with his teammate:
"Spinx played a good tournament, but he need to play a little bit better in the next one. But it's fine. He will take one MVP away from me in another tournaments. He will win tournaments, for sure."
Finally, the Frenchman said that IEM Rio wasn't the main goal, but the title will surely help them going on into the season: "Rio wasn't a priority for us, but now that we've won, this will give us momentum and confidence. We have a good feeling towards the Paris Major."
Stay tuned to esports.gg for the latest CS:GO news and updates.
