ZywOo on top: The highest rated players at the BLAST.tv Austin Major
The BLAST.tv Austin Major will go down as a landmark Major in Counter-Strike, not just because it was the biggest Major of all time, but also because it was where Vitality truly established their era after enjoying unprecedented dominance in the first half of 2025.
The first Major to have four stages of competition, there was plenty of banger matches, as well as plenty of players that shined within those bangers.
As we begin to look back on the Major, let's first take a look at the stages and see which players it was that stood out the most in each stage.
Stage 1
It maybe shouldn't come as a surprise considering he began the Stage with a 3.08 rated game against Complexity on Ancient, but nicoodoz was the highest rated player in Stage 1 as OG went through with a 3-1 record and nicoodoz standing tall with a 1.70 rating.
He wasn't the only OG player in the top five, either, Chr1zN and spooke also make the list with 1.31 and 1.38 ratings respectively. An even better sign for OG, F1KU just missed out on the top five, he ended OG's five maps with a 1.30 rating.
The final two members of the top five both play for HEROIC. tN1R and SunPayus, the two big stars of the team, were both impressive in Stage 1, with them firing their team to a 3-0 record thanks to 1.40 and 1.34 ratings respectively.
Photo: Stephanie LindgrenThe top five players in Stage 1:
- nicoodoz - 1.70
- tN1R - 1.40
- spooke - 1.38
- SunPayus - 1.34
- Chr1zN - 1.31
Photo: Stephanie LindgrenStage 2
With more big teams arriving, not a single one of Stage 1's highest rated players made it into the top five for Stage 2. However, the player to top the list for Stage 1 might come as a surprise.
That player, latto, had an incredible Stage 2 as Legacy surprised everyone to go 3-0 with a win over FaZe in their 2-0 match. A key figure in their run in Austin, his 1.37 rating saw him just edge ahead of YEKINDAR and electroNic, who both recorded a 1.32 rating, to top the table.
Rounding out the top five, or six in this case seeing as we had two players tied for the fifth spot, were frozen, KSCERATO, and nqz. frozen ended the stage with a 1.30 rating, while the two Brazilians both had a 1.29 rating.
Photo: Stephanie LindgrenThe top five players from Stage 2
- latto - 1.37
- YEKINDAR and electroNic - 1.32
- frozen - 1.30
- KSCERATO and nqz - 1.29
Photo: Stephanie LindgrenStage 3 and playoffs
Heading into Stage 3 and playoffs, Brazilians stayed at the absolute peak of their powers as two players made their way into the top five. Fourth and fifth this time around, dumau and yuurih rounded out the top five with 1.29 and 1.27 ratings respectively.
One huge positive considering it meant that he got over his issues on stages, was Senzu. The third highest rated player in stage 3 and playoffs, Senzu was instrumental in The MongolZ' historic run the the Grand Final, recording an incredible 1.29 rating.
Of course, it couldn't be the top five without ZywOo and donk. The two best players in the world, they topped the charts for Stage 3 and playoffs, closing out their respective times in Austin with 1.42 and 1.41 ratings.
Photo: Michal KonkolThe top five players from Stage 3 and playoffs
- ZywOo - 1.42
- donk - 1.41
- Senzu and dumau - 1.29
- yuurih - 1.27
