While
Natus Vincere could scarcely have hoped for a better start to the
LEC Versus, with three wins and a single loss, Volodymyr "
Maynter" Sorokin has also delivered a convincing opening stretch on the toplane. Although he does not stand out for a carry-oriented playstyle, the Ukrainian player consistently fulfills his role and tips games in his team’s favor when opportunities arise.
On Saturday, after his victory against Karmine Corp Blue — the team he helped bring into LEC Versus — Maynter spoke with Sheep Esports about NAVI’s strong start and his role within the squad. In their other two matches of the weekend, NAVI secured a victory against SK Gaming on Sunday before suffering a defeat to Karmine Corp’s main team on Monday.
What is your first feeling after the game?
Volodymyr "Maynter" Sorokin: "I am a bit exhausted, to be honest. It was a lot of emotional jumps. Sometimes it feels like, "Oh my god, I'm trolling" and then "Oh it's free win", and then again "Oh my god we are trolling" and it was perma-changing. So it was a lot of emotions. The result was good; at least we won.
How was it to play against Karmine Corp Blue after the last two years you spent with them, and also against Johnny "Yukino" Dang, who was your teammate last year?
Maynter: It felt pretty friendly, like a little scrim. I know the coach, I know Yukino, I saw them before the game, and I was like, "Hello, hello, how are you? Good luck!" It was a good vibe, before the game and after. So it felt like we just played against friends basically.
Have you seen some of the fans cheering for you today or in the first week?
Maynter: In the first week, a lot, yeah. Today, I'm not sure; they were screaming mainly about KCB. But to be honest, I got so used to it before, and now when I was playing, I felt like they were screaming for me, and only after 10-15 minutes I realized, "Oh, it's not about me". But it's an old habit.
About your first week, how was your preparation before the beginning of the split? Did everything go as you expected?
Maynter: I felt like we didn't have much time, and a lot of days were like one day media, one day something else, traveling for a visa, and a lot of days just basically died where we didn't practice. The first split feels like it's super small and also with not much time before, so it feels like we are in a rush. But yeah, overall pretty good. I expect a good level from NAVI, and I got it.
You've been able to surprise a lot of fans with your first week. You were even close to starting with a 3-0. Did you actually expect such a good start from your team?
Maynter: I didn't expect 3-0, but I knew we could win easily all three or lose all three. It depends on how we start. I think the first game was important. I think if we lost the first game, it would have snowball maybe. Like we are rookies, we're losing the first game, and we can be like, "Oh my god, we are bad players". And then we could lose the second because it was Vitality, and they are decent. And then it could snowball, but we were stomping, and I think we got a little bit cocky. And the moment we lost, we came back on the ground, and now it's just fine.
What do you think you lacked against Fnatic last week?
Maynter: I think we just lost the communication. At some point, we just stopped listening to each other, and at the moment we started to do different plans, like three people doing one stuff, two people doing different. We made a lot of mistakes after. But in the first moment, it was like we were talking about something, and someone didn't hear it or ignore it, maybe because of stress or something else. The first twenty minutes were good, and then it was a disaster.
What do you aim for with the team in terms of results this year? What do you think you can achieve?
Maynter: I think we can do a lot. It just depends on how we progress. This year, I obviously want to go to an international event. I'm not sure about winning LEC in the first two splits; in the third split, it's possible. I want to achieve like MSI, obviously, and then Worlds, it's like the biggest goal. For now, the goal in this split is to achieve the play-offs. And in play-offs, we want to play well so we get playoff experience, because it's the most important for the next split. For now, we just need practice in best-of-five, best-of-three to see how people play in long series in LEC.
What do you think your team actually miss right now to compete with the top 4?
Maynter: I think we just need time. G2 have been playing together for a long time. GIANTX played together a lot; MKOI didn't change anything. We just need time to understand each other to know how everyone sees the game, share it, and create our habits in-game. And the moment we get used to each other, and we will have a lot of data together, we'll be able to play well as well.
So far, you played three games of K'santé and a Sion today. Would you like to show more in terms of champions and what you're able to do?
Maynter: I'm not committing to this stuff, like I don't want to pick Yasuo on top and be a superstar. I pick the best champion that I think is the best in this game, and if it will be twelve games in a row K'Santé, I don't mind. But if tomorrow I need to play Gnar or Rumble, I think I will do it, I don't mind. I just always go for the best champion in the game, and I just play for win.
All of your teammates showed a pretty convincing level so far. Is there any of them that surprised you when you started to play with him?
Maynter: I would say Rhilech (Enes Uçan). At first, I felt like he was a bit of a micro guy and not macro. He's more like little skirmishes, all this stuff, and I felt like he's a super active guy. But after like two or three weeks of scrims, he got this important stuff about macro. And now, every time I press tab, he's ahead in CS, ahead in kills, ahead in level on enemy jungle, whoever we play, like Razork (Ivan Martin) or Yukino, for example. It feels like he's smooth in every game so far. So yeah, I was a bit shocked.
He seemed pretty confident in his playstyle, and he has been playing a lot of Ambessa and Artrox. Is it part of your game plan to play around him and to make him play on carries?
Maynter: I think it all depends on drafts. I think in scrims or in officials, it can be different, but in scrims, we are trying other stuff as well. It's not only Rhilech on hypercarry stuff. It depends on what we think is the best, I guess. He can play everything, I believe.
How is it working with Vasilis "TheRock" Voltis again after the time spent with him in KCB last year?
Maynter: It's nothing new for me. I was working with him for one year. The moment I joined this new team, it felt easy because I already knew one guy. And I can already trust this person. So he made my adaptation to the new team much faster and easier.
When we talked to TheRock a few weeks ago, he said to us that when he picked you, he needed "someone who could push discussion and leadership in reviews and in-game." What would you say is your role among the team right now?
Maynter: I think I'm pretty vocal on review, yes, but it's not like I'm teaching things to my teammates or something like that. I think I create a discussion, sometimes ask something, sometimes show something, and then we discuss. And I just believe the more we discuss the moments that maybe for some are obvious, for some are not, it helps us to be on the same page. So, I just talk a lot and ask a lot and give a lot of my opinion, and maybe I motivate my teammates also to share their opinion. So, I feel like I'm doing well on it, I hope."
