PashaBMW: "I want to win a Major with this team"

Virtus.pro made it four titles in a row on Sunday, beating fnatic 2-0 in the grand final of cs_summit 7 to follow up on their wins at IEM New York CIS, Flashpoint 2, and DreamHack Open December. Pavel "⁠PashaBMW⁠" Tishchenko was once again the standout performer, finishing the event with a 1.48 rating over 10 maps and adding a fourth consecutive MVP medal to his collection.

The bears did not drop a map at the event, and the 18-year-old saved his best for the playoffs, posting a 1.74 rating in the 2-0 semi-final win over MOUZ.

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Virtus.pro down fnatic to lift cs_summit 7 trophy

We caught up with PashaBMW the day after the final to talk about the winning streak, the nervy end of Inferno, his place in our Top 20, and the Major he hopes to play this year.

Four tournaments, four trophies, four MVP medals. How does it feel?

It feels good, of course, but it's also a little bit strange. A year ago I was playing open qualifiers with Bimmer Gaming, and now I am winning tournaments with Virtus.pro. I try not to think about it too much, because if you start to think that you are already good, you stop improving.

You led 11-4 on Inferno and fnatic came back to 14-14. What happens in the team in a moment like that?

Nothing special, to be honest. We don't shout at each other. Jame says a few words, we talk about what didn't work in the last rounds, and we play the next one. In the Flashpoint final we also lost a map to OG and came back, so there was no panic. But of course, I would prefer to close the maps faster.

You finished the series with 27-11 on Vertigo. What was going on in that map?

I like Vertigo a lot. It's a map where you have a lot of duels and you can take a lot of space if you are confident. fnatic played a bit passive on the CT side, so I could get a lot of information early and the guys gave me the opening frags. When it goes like this, you feel that every peek will work.

You played Ninjas in Pyjamas twice at this event and beat them 2-0 both times. Is it easier the second time?

Not really. When you play against a team for the second time in a week, they know what you did and you know what they did, so it's more about who adapts better. In the quarter-final Dust2 was very close, 16-14, and we won it only because we didn't change our game when they started to read us.

You were ranked 17th in our Top 20 at the start of January. Did you read it?

Yes, of course. I think it was fair. I played less maps than the other players and most of my good results were in the second half of the year. This year I want to play a full season at this level, and then we will see where I am.

Everyone is talking about LAN events coming back this year. You have never played a big LAN. Is that something you think about?

A lot of people ask me about this. I played some small LANs in Russia with Bimmer Gaming, but it's not the same, I know. I think it will be a new experience, but in the end it's the same game and the same team. If we prepare well, I don't think it will change much.

The Major is expected to return later this year. What does this team need to win it?

I want to win a Major with this team. We have aim, we have Jame calling, and we have a coach who works with demos all day. What we don't have yet is LAN experience together, and you can't buy that. We have to collect it at every tournament we play this year.

What's next for Virtus.pro?

We have a short break and then we start preparing for the next events. We know we can play better, and this is the good part. If we play like this and still win, I think we can go even further.