Olivia R. January 17, 2020
After four months of less than desirable performances, Ladislav "GuardiaN" Kovacs might be benched by Natus Vincere.
According to a report from 1pv.fr, Na'Vi Junior player Rodion "fear" Smyk has been playing in GuardiaN's place during recent practice sessions. With Aleksandr "s1mple" Kostyliev most likely taking back the AWP role, Na'Vi would have to find a new rifler.
This isn't a permanent change, however, and the Ukranian Counter-Strike: Global Offensive team is reportedly discussing what to do next about the situation.
Na'Vi criticized for adding GuardiaN
GuardiaN rejoined Natus Vincere in September 2019 and the negative results of this roster change were almost immediately apparent to both fans and analysts alike.
Over the next four months, GuardiaN failed to impress at StarSeries i-League Season 8 and EPICENTER 2019. This gave him an average rating of 0.95.
In December, s1mple's ratings started to slip as well and fans were quick to blame GuardiaN. Since GuardiaN had taken the AWP role, s1mple had transitioned back to the rifling position. It quickly became clear that s1mple had been the better AWPer, making fans resent GuardiaN to an extent.
GuardiaN has had a long and successful career in Counter-Strike. At his peak, GuariaN was considered to be the best AWPer in the world, and was frequently ranked among the world's best overall players.
But time hasn't been kind to the former star. While GuardiaN showed some flashes of his old brilliance during his time with FaZe Clan, he has been on a generally downward trajectory. His time with Na'Vi has only furthered this trend, with GuardiaN posting some of his worst performances in his career.
Fans have questioned how a team that is so full of talent, particularly between s1mple and fellow star Denis "electronic" Sharipov, can struggle to post consistently good results at tournaments. Whether sooner or later, GuardiaN is likely to be a casualty of the team's struggles.
Na'Vi's current roster:
- Egor "flamie" Vasilev
- Aleksandr "s1mple" Kostyliev
- Denis "electronic" Sharipov
- Kirill "Boombl4" Mikhailov