Zont1x: Spirit Needs Bigger Wins Before ‘Best’ Tag

Spirit advanced from the BLAST Open Porto group stage by defeating DENDELE, G2 and FURIA without losing a map. Myroslav “zont1x” Plakhotia said the roster felt comfortable in those matches but identified remaining issues in individual form and consistency ahead of the Porto playoffs.

Plakhotia pointed to problems the team must correct for deeper runs at majors and other large events. “We still encounter different problems. I would say not everyone is in the best shape individually. But still it was very comfortable, so if we will manage to fix the problems we encountered in the group stage, we should be able to play fine here as well,” he said.

Opponents targeted Cache during the group stage after Spirit struggled on the map at the Esports World Cup, but Spirit won its Cache matches in Porto. Plakhotia attributed earlier difficulties to the map’s reintroduction and the team’s need to adapt. “It’s a new map. You don’t necessarily understand how exactly you have to play it, and after some practice we managed to find the way we want to play it,” he noted, adding that players with prior Cache experience may have a short-term edge that practice can close.

Pressed on whether Spirit should be viewed as the world’s best team, Plakhotia declined to accept the label without more decisive results. He cited recent setbacks — a loss to JiJieHao, a close match with BIG and a grand-final defeat to MOUZ — and said the squad does not have a long win streak to justify the claim. “We don’t have a 20-map winstreak to talk about this,” he said, and added that tournament wins are the clear measure for naming a top team.

Plakhotia also addressed earlier comments about motivation, saying he remains candid in interviews and is not bothered by how his remarks are reported. He said teammates or the organization sometimes discuss his public statements but that those conversations do not create problems. When asked if the team was in good enough shape to win Porto, he replied yes.

Spirit moves into the BLAST Open Porto playoffs with an unbeaten group record and will compete for the tournament title in Porto.