XTQZZZ explains the jL stand-in choice
Team Vitality has confirmed its lineup adjustments ahead of BLAST Open Porto and PGL Masters Bucharest. With William «mezii» Merriman and Dan «apEX» Madesclaire taking paternity leave, head coach Rémy «XTQZZZ» Quoniam has opted for Justinas «jL» Lekavicius as the stand-in. In an interview with HLTV, XTQZZZ outlined the reasoning behind the decision.
Experience over academy prospects
"We had some options. We could have taken a player from our academy," said XTQZZZ. The coach emphasized that for a Major setting, experience and knowing a player can perform are paramount.
"And jL, because with the roles, with how we have seen the stand-in, we thought it was not the perfect fit, but the best fit at least. We had two, three options, and he was the best."
jL's Major history
It is worth noting that jL has already proven he can win a Major. He achieved this with NAVI at the 2024 PGL CS2 Major Copenhagen, where he was both champion and MVP. Following his departure from NAVI, he did not have a set team before bouncing to MOUZ, where he competed in two events this season.
Vitality's current EWC situation
Vitality have initially struggled at the Esports World Cup, losing to B8 and dropping to the losers' bracket. Although they beat Lynn Vision to stay alive, it has sparked doubt about the team.
"EWC is a big goal for the organization, and also for us it's a big tournament. We want to take one tournament at a time because after that, as you said, it's going to be weird. But we have to accept it and move forward."
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