Everyone should be scared of Vitality at World Final

When Vitality lost both Magisk and zonic, it was hard to imagine them maintaining their level a the pinnacle of Counter-Strike.

Now, after just one event with XQTZZZ and mezii, it's hard to see them ever not being at the top.

The team were as good as ever as they ended FaZe's CS2 winning streak at BLAST Premier Fall Final, and the stats behind their trophy win suggests that this is form they can maintain for a long time.

Starting with MVP of Fall Final, ZywOo, the French AWPer quickly dispelled fears that he may have been nerfed by the arrival of the new game.

His 1.45 CT side HLTV rating was monstrous, and at 1.27 on the T side, the attacking part of his game isn't too shabby. Sure, these are the numbers we have come to expect from ZywOo this year, but it was nice to see him continue to shine in CS2.

Photo: Michal Konkol

Averaging just under 20 kills per 24 rounds and 3.82 opening kills per 24 rounds, ZywOo is a constant threat for his enemies, and, as his reign of terror continues at the end of 2023, he will be the most feared player at BLAST Premier World Final 2023.

The second most dangerous player on Vitality is Spinx, who has been a revelation since they signed him from ENCE last year. Key to all of their tournament wins this year, that was no different in Copenhagen.

Once again a star on the CT side, his 1.31 HLTV rating shows how strong he has become with the support he gets from his captain, apEX.

Perhaps even more impressive, however, is the fact he remains above a 1.20 HLTV rating on the T side, the typically harder side for players to shine on thanks to the CT-sided nature of the maps in the game. The fact Spinx can consistently perform in both halves is what makes him so special.

Photo: Stephanie Lindgren

Looking deeper into Spinx's stats is also where you begin to see how Vitality have managed to maintain their position at the top this year. Despite being the team's primary lurker, he averages 3.49 trade kills per 24 rounds, just shy of ZywOo's 3.71.

Lurkers are often criticised for being too far from the action to effectively help their team in those chaotic moments, so Spinx's trade kills being so high reflects well on Vitality's fundamentals of spacing and timing.

Of course, none of that would be possible without apEX, the man who has quietly become one of the best IGLs in the world in the past couple of years.

Once an unlikely candidate for leadership, it was easy to pin his success in the role on zonic, although he now continues to impress without him.

Photo: Stephanie Lindgren

apEX's numbers for the event show how far he has come as a player since taking on the burden of leadership - and all while he outcalled karrigan in the final.

Now incredibly supportive in his role, he averages 0.23 flash assists per round, a stat which is key to his team's success.

And, as a signifier of how strong his in-game leading has gotten, just take a look at Vitality's round-win percentages. 59% overall is impressive, but 58% on T side is monstrous, and only a special leader can guide his team like that. Their 78% 5v4 conversion rate also reflects highly on apEX, especially his ability to remain calm and not make rash decisions when already in an advantageous position.

apEX has also been instrumental in turning flameZ into a completely new and improved player.

Photo: Michal Konkol

Now an anchor, flameZ has gone from strength to strength on Vitality, and he continued to impress at Fall Final. His 1.18 CT side HLTV rating proves how hard it is to even threaten his bombsite, and at 1.21 on the T side, shows how well he and apEX understand each other when it comes to threatening their enemies' bombsites.

Of course, this is all without mentioning mezii, the newest and final member of this incredible team. The Brit may not have had his greatest event at Fall Final, but it was his first on Vitality, and he was still strong as he won his first tier one event.

At World Final, mezii's hunger to lift trophies will still be unsatiated, his desire to be the best will still be pushing him along, his need to keep ascending to the top of the chain will be pushing him further than ever. At World Final, we will see the next evolution of mezii and as a result of that, the next evolution of Vitality.

We can't wait to watch them in the Etihad Arena, and we're sure their opponents will be quaking with fear.