We talked to our friends over at a fellow news page about Mineski CS:GO’s run
Even though we are from opposite sides of the industry, we thought it would be great to compare notes on the recent WESG APAC games with a fellow esports news journal in PlayonWASD. All of us are fans of the Filipino teams anyway and no matter what our affiliations, we want our country’s delegates to win.
Below is a conversation between our resident CS:GO expert and caster Jiro “Nomad” Pineda with PlayonWASD’s Earl Carlo “Dreamslayer28” Guevarra as they discuss the first day of matches for Mineski CS:GO over at the World Electronic Sports Games 2017, APAC Leg. Note that this log is from Mineski’s tournament run during the group stages before they got eliminated.
Earl Carlo Dreamslayer28 Guevarra: It could have been better. Mineski-CS:GO were in contention for all the matches, including Recca, which I did not expect. I was expecting them to handle the rest of the teams, EMC and UTM, which they almost did.
That is a painful debut for Mineski-CS:GO’s current lineup and most especially for Jhun-Jhun “FRIGHT” Dadole. I was happy that FRIGHT was able to appear in the matches though, considering that he was just new.
Lastly, this shows the truth of the axiom that Asian teams are fairly even and can beat each other on a good day. There were things that could have done better, but still I am hoping that Mineski-CS:GO learns from this experience and come back stronger.
Jiro Nomad Pineda: Agreed, Mineski-CS:GO needs to bill this to experience and start building from there. They had a good run during the ROG Masters, and they showed that they are a force to reckon with in the Southeast Asian region.
Mineski-CS:GO’s run in the entire tournament was a heartbreaker not just for them but for the fans watching. They have the win-conditions going into the tournament, but it seems like their tournament mindset was somewhere else.
Let’s not discount the fact that they all came back from harsh first halves in every series. They had a good start during their bout with Recca Esports with a 7-0 lead. But what surprising is that they weren’t able to close out a solid first half. The following series were just devastating.
It was their comebacks that proved that they have the firepower it takes to keep up on an international level, it’s just that too many little things added up this time.
What do you think are the pivotal moments from Mineski-CS:GO from all of the series?
Personally, I’d go for their huge comeback against UTM; they were down for the count during the first half at 4:11 but then suddenly bounced back and forced the game to overtime.
Earl Carlo Dreamslayer28 Guevarra: I would also pick Game 2, most especially the CT side of Inferno. It was great to watch, especially the timings on the defense and the rotations. This was where the combined efforts of dubstep and the rest of the team actually allowed them to be in contention throughout the map.
How about MVPs of each match?
Jiro Nomad Pineda I’d go for Kevin ”xccurate” Susanto for their first match against Recca. His clutches were on point and were the decisive moments to turn things around and get the win. Jayvee ”Dubstep” Paguirigan is going to be my MVP for the second series; he was able to pick up the slack from the rest of his teammates. Him being IGL, some of his decisions allowed Mineski-CS:GO to comeback from a bad start.
Earl Carlo Dreamslayer28 Guevarra: I have the same MVPs for the first two maps for the same reasons as you mentioned.
I would add that Baskoro “roseau” Dwi Putras defense of the B site and a lurk from CT would have been in contention, but overall. xccurate showed why he is a hot prospect today.
For the third map, it will go to Chun ”hypathor” Ming Jark, who opened up the duels and scored many kills in order to crack open sites or ensure an advantage in the defense.
My turn to ask: Breaking points of each match?
First match was when xccurate clutched rounds and other attempts in the endgame, ensuring that Mineski-CS:GO’s economy on the CT side never had a chance to recover.
Second match were the calls and game of Dubstep, which allowed them to salvage what seemed to be a non-competitive matchup.
Third match were the successful duels of hypathor, which allowed his team to go comfortably with their game plan and made a great contribution to their win.
Jiro Nomad Pineda: I guess we share the same sentiments for the breakout points per match.
Earl Carlo Dreamslayer28 Guevarra: I am a fan of the theory that the context matters as much as the results.
Results-wise, this is was an unfortunate debut for Mineski-CS:GO’s lineup. Context-wise, Mineski-CS:GO did a decent run in the tournament, considering that they were under immense pressure to perform well in this tournament. They may have failed in getting the end goal, which was to qualify for the World Finals, but things such as dubstep’s calling, FRIGHT’s consistent performance and other small details leaves much hope for the future.
The team can certainly learn from this experience; after all, we saw how resilient they were during the entire group stage. I do hope not to see only Mineski-CS:GO in the global stage, but also other Filipino teams in the near future.
Jiro Nomad Pineda: Agreed, Mineski-CS:GO may have lost, but deep down they know that they’re capable of going up against teams from other countries. I think that matters, to know that the difference was not a matter of talent difference but more of decisions they can always improve on.
For more information and other news regarding the WESG 2017 Asia Pacific finals, click here!
