After a start to the year in which
G2 Esports were still searching for their new identity, the team triumphed in a
VALORANT Champions Tour
Americas Stage 1 final that went the full five maps, winning their fourth championship title in a row and their first of the year.
Following this victory, the team’s IGL, Jacob “valyn” Batio, gave Sheep Esports an interview in which he discussed the team’s journey since the start of the year, Andrej “BABYBAY” Francisty’s development in his new role, and more topics.
How are you feeling after reaching another VCT Americas title, this time in a spectacular five-map final against Leviatán?
Jacob “valyn” Batio: “It feels great. I’m really tired because we had a best-of-five yesterday that went to five maps, and then another one today. Honestly, I’m a bit sad because I feel like I didn’t play my best game today. I wish I had played a bit better. I let my guys down in some moments, but regardless, they were so insane. They pushed me into the ending on Split, where I could recover and do well for them. So yeah, I feel like this was a really nice game because I can look back at it and try to learn from my mistakes, but it’s also nice that we still won. So it’s kind of a win-win situation.
We saw a real battle between both teams, with each side trading rounds throughout the series. From your perspective, what made this match so difficult to close out?
valyn: At the end of Split, I think jawgemo (Alexander Mor) had a 1v2 with the Sheriff, and that gave us so much momentum going into the next rounds. Once the game got close, I think that’s where the experience shone. They were getting antsy. I think they felt the trophy getting close to them, and I know how that feels, going back to Masters Bangkok and stuff. Sometimes you get antsy, you mess up, and I think they messed up at some points. It was blow-for-blow the whole game, so it was really hectic and really stressful, but we managed it well.
As you mentioned, this is not G2’s first final. Did this one feel different for you, and if so, why?
valyn: I think today this title felt different for a couple of reasons. We had to play a map that we had no practice on, so a lot of our preparation was not for the other maps, but for Fracture. Being honest, we hadn’t scrimmed it once, and we played it today with zero scrims. I swear to God.
That was pretty crazy for us, preparation-wise. I also think Leviatán are such a good team. I think they are the best team we have faced in a final before. It was just hard. It was really mentally taxing, and it also felt different because our energy was always an uphill battle after yesterday’s long game. You have to come in today and just keep going, keep going, keep going. It was hard, but we did it, so it feels even better than the other ones.
G2 have gone through different phases since the start of the year, including roster changes and BABYBAY coming back with a real place in the team this time. How did the team manage to stay competitive while adapting to those changes?
valyn: I think it was hard at first, trying to figure out what role he would slot into right away. You saw him on Duelist, you saw him on Chamber, and then we had to implement Vyse. Honestly, BABYBAY is a really good teammate because in those high-pressure games, he is always giving energy and always reminding us to give it our all. He is a really good hype guy, a vibes guy, but he also shoots hard, so he really does it all.
It was a bit of an integration process at the beginning, but I think now we are in a good spot with him. It is a bit different than, let’s say, with JonahP (Jonah Pulice). When we had Jonah in the past, he was really vocal in moments like this. He would tell people what to do, give really good micro-communications, and help everyone around him. Now, I would say that responsibility falls more on the other boy’s kind of fills around the gaps more. So we have more responsibility. But other than that, he is playing great.
G2 Esports Wins the VCT Americas Championship Title for the Fourth Time. Credit: Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games
As an IGL, you usually have to work with four different players who have different profiles and reactions depending on the situation. How much does it help you to have teammates you know almost perfectly after spending so much time together?
valyn: I think it shows in the match. The best example, if you want to see it, was our Split attack pistol. Maybe another team goes up mid-way faster, but the guys knew the pace. They knew my calling, they knew how I wanted to approach the round, and it ended up being such a perfect pace to the round. Moments like that are what define our team in crucial moments. Honestly, when we are not playing well, that is what it looks like.
We look too fast, we look out of control, and it looks like we are letting the game slip. The experience, the fact that they understand me, that they understand when games get hectic and how I call, and how to help me as well, is a blessing to have with such a long-standing core. But it is still something we are working on. It is something that Josh (Josh “JoshRT Lee) and I try to help everyone with, and that Josh tries to help me with. It is an ongoing problem, but yeah, it is better because we have been together for so long.
You have secured your ticket to the Masters London playoffs as the first seed. Considering your start to the year, what other teams have shown, and the change in the meta, do you think the current meta can work in your favor at this tournament?
valyn: Yeah, I think so for sure. This Grand Final, and even the EWC qualifier if we had to play it, was going to be hard because of all the teams that are just abusing Neon. I don’t think we are one of them. You see us play a lot of Raze, Yoru on Ascent. You see us play a lot of different Duelists because we kind of view the game a bit differently. Neon can be a crutch for some teams.
For us, I think it makes us play too fast, so I’m glad that she is a bit more nerfed. I think she is still viable, though. She is not dead like everyone is making her out to be. I think she is still decent. Teams like Leviatán may keep running Neon, but it makes it easier to play because there is no more just jumping, jumping, jumping, shotgun, boom. That sucks to die to. I’m happy that it is going to be a lot easier to play against that in London.
If you had to summarize your start to the year with G2, what would you say? And in your opinion, what has allowed G2 to really grow during this first part of the season?
valyn: It has kind of been a roller coaster start. I think what made us grow is our coaching. Josh works incredibly hard to make sure that the players are in top form, both on a micro level and a macro level. I think what allowed us to grow as well was our performance coach. Weeks can get hard.
Days like this can get hard when you play ten maps back to back, and they are really helping us understand how to be the best performers we can be. Also, our assistant coach, Peter (Peter "shhhack" Belej), is always giving a lot of ideas, which helps Josh. So really, I think the credit goes to those three. We have a new player, new metas, and new comps, and they are keeping everything on top for us.
To finish with a slightly more fun question, as an IGL, if you had to create your own agent to lead the game using abilities that already exist in VALORANT, which abilities would your agent have? You can choose three abilities and one ultimate.
valyn: I’m going to do Astra smokes. That way, I can be anywhere on the map and put Astra smokes down, or pull back the star. Yeah, I’ll just take the smokes of Astra. I’ll do Omen’s flash, and the TPs of Omen, honestly. I can play Omen, but if I were able to instantly put a smoke down like Astra, bro, it would be the best agent ever. For the ultimate, bro, give me Raze ult. You can’t push my side. Give me Raze ult. I’ve got a bazooka, I’ve got smokes, I’ve got flash. You guys are fucked.”
