Legacy secured a quarterfinal spot at the Esports World Cup. With explosive starts on Inferno and Ancient, they comfortably defeated NAVI.
After the match, arT shared his thoughts on the game, including the reasoning behind the vetoes, and talked about the strong start since try joined the team.
"Sometimes we still lack a bit of communication and can't understand each other better and faster, but because his individual ability is so strong, even if we're not on the same page all the time, he can still stand out," he said of try.
"So I think this is also a process that will only get better and better."
This Brazilian team will next face defending Major champions Falcons in the quarterfinals. This will be a rematch of the CAC final, where Legacy defeated them by a large margin three months ago.
"They will definitely be out for revenge," arT said, "we've played each other before, so both teams know each other's playstyle very well. I think Falcons have improved a lot since that CAC. So much so that they went on to win the Major.
"So they are definitely a different team now — a well-prepared, confident team. And what we need to do is play our best CS, impose our style, and not let them control the game."
Q: Beating NAVI 2-0 like this is a result many people would find surprising. Did you expect the match to go like this, or was it easier than you anticipated?
arT: I think against NAVI you always expect a tough battle; we've faced each other a few times in the past, and I think most of the time we came out on top. Today we had a few rounds that went pretty smoothly, which allowed us to build a comfortable lead, right? And winning the pistol rounds helped a lot as well.
Q: It's the exact same maps as your match against them at the Major, but with a completely different result. What changed compared to that match at the Major? What was the secret to your win on Ancient?
arT: I think we were very well prepared. We knew their pick would be Ancient. I think in the veto phase, both teams were a bit surprised, right? Because they banned Dust2, which we didn't expect, and let Cache through — a map they don't play much. So I think that was a bit surprising.
We ended up banning Mirage as well. I think that surprised them too, because they don't really like Nuke, right? Then there was Cache, a map they hadn't played but we had. So we knew it would very likely be Cache. So I think it was a surprise for both sides, but in the end we didn't need a third map.
Q: In the second half on Inferno, w0nderful had some brilliant rounds to keep NAVI in the game. Were you ever worried that you wouldn't be able to close out the map?
arT: No, I don't think so. We knew we were creating man advantages and playing the rounds well. I think it came down to some small details — the 1v3 he won and that pistol round. We had the advantage, but just couldn't close it out, right? So we knew that as long as we kept playing the way we wanted to, we would keep creating those man advantages and eventually take the map.
Q: After you won CAC in China, there were some comments like "This is a second-tier tournament, they can only win in China." Do you think this is a good response to those who questioned the team's strength?
arT: We know our CS level and potential. I think that's what matters to us. What others say matters less than the results themselves. Our job is to do what we know how to do and always strive for better results.
Q: This is your first event with try, and he had another good performance today. What's it like playing with him? Did you expect him to play like this in his first event with the team?
arT: I think try has already integrated well into the team, but there are definitely still a lot of things we haven't figured out yet. For example, there are some maps he didn't play much before, and we are playing those maps now.
We also discussed a lot about his role on certain maps — some of the things we need him to do. That also takes some time to get up to speed. We haven't had enough time to go through all the scenarios and situations on every map yet.
Sometimes we still lack a bit of communication and are unable to understand each other better and faster, but because his individual ability is so strong, even when we are not always on the same page, he can still stand out. So I think this is also a process that will only keep getting better.
Q: What is the main difference between try and saadzin? Was there anything about try that surprised you?
arT: I think they are both players with huge potential; I think they are very similar in that regard. I think they both have their own strengths and weaknesses, and it's more about being able to fit him in in a way that makes try most comfortable playing CS, just like we did with saadzin back then. Of course, when you replace a player who is very important to the team, you have to change a lot of things, a lot of structures, and he has to make some adjustments himself. So I think that's the process right now: focusing on making these improvements and adjustments, because the team hasn't fully gelled with him yet.
Q: What do you think went wrong in the match against FaZe?
arT: I think we made a lot of mistakes in our execution on Cache. I think that threw us off a bit in the most important rounds of the match, and then that led to a one-sided scoreline. We then lost the pistol round as well, which really made things very difficult. I don't remember the other map. I think it was Mirage, but I'm not sure. But I think — if I remember correctly — we played okay in the first half; we just couldn't close out the second half. So I think it really comes down to the details.
Q: You and saadzin won two CAC trophies together. The addition of try has raised the standard. How far do you think this team can go?
arT: I think we're more focused on improving our CS, playing better, and staying competitive. We've been through ups and downs, as did the previous lineup, and this is our first tournament, so we don't know what will happen or how far we can go. But that's our job: to play well in this tournament, do our best, get the best possible result, try to win the trophy, focus on this step — and then see what comes next.
Q: Looking ahead to the game against Falcons, this is a rematch of the CAC final. They'll want revenge, right? What are your expectations?
arT: They definitely will. We've faced each other before, so both teams know each other's playstyle very well. I think Falcons have improved a lot since that CAC. To the point that they went on to win the Major. So they are definitely a different team now — a well-prepared, confident team. And what we need to do is play our best CS, impose our style, and not let them control the game.