Top 20 players of 2020: ZywOo (1)

Unparalleled impact in the biggest matches and stunning consistency see Mathieu "⁠ZywOo⁠" Herbaut take the top spot in our ranking of the top 20 players of 2020, powered by GG.BET and Xtrfy, in a neck-and-neck race for the crown.

Top 20 players of 2020: Introduction

ZywOo has enjoyed a meteoric rise to prominence in the last two years, but his name began being tossed around as a potential star as early as 2017, when he became a regular presence in the French sub-top, first with E-Corp and then with WySix. However, his first matches on record on HLTV.org actually date back to August 2016, when he played for a mix team called nevermind in the open qualifiers for ECS Season 2’s Development League alongside current G2 in-game leader, Nemanja "⁠nexa⁠" Isaković.

ZywOo won plenty of early admirers, including his current teammate Richard "⁠shox⁠" Papillon, who said in April 2017 that he liked the rising star "very, very much" and that he saw in the youngster "some of my moves". Only one month later, he garnered many new followers after being the first player featured in our "One for the future" article series, which covers some of the game’s hottest prospects. That summer, he was invited to play in FPL, initially on trial, which offered him the chance to glean plenty from pick-up games against some of the best players in Europe while he didn’t make the jump to professional Counter-Strike.

It was not for a lack of suitors that ZywOo didn’t become a professional player that year. Current G2 coach Damien "⁠maLeK⁠" Marcel already had the 16-year-old on his shortlist of candidates for Envy’s academy team, but the youngster’s mother did not let him fully commit to the game until he finished high school. ZywOo continued his development in the sub-top, helping aAa, who had recruited his WySix team to win the ESL National Championship Summer 2018, where he averaged a stunning 1.70 rating in the series against MAXISAUCISSE and LDLC.

The long-awaited transition to pro finally happened in October 2018, when ZywOo was unveiled by Vitality, one of the biggest esports organisations in France, alongside four veterans, three of them Major champions. The weight of expectations did not faze the then-18-year-old, who powered Vitality to victory at his first international LAN, DreamHack Open Atlanta 2018, where he put up a 1.40 rating as the team beat a field that included Complexity, Ghost and Luminosity.

It would have been difficult to imagine a better debut year than the one that ZywOo had in 2019. After a somewhat slow start, the French prodigy picked up the pace and began to showcase his talent at the biggest events. He scooped five MVP medals and was a beacon of consistency in Vitality’s up-and-down year, topping the charts for rating (1.30), including big-event playoff rating (1.33), Impact (1.40), ADR (86.1) and KDD (+955). He became the youngest player to be ranked first in an HLTV Top 20 - also matching Marcelo "⁠coldzera⁠" David’s feat of being named the best player in the world in his first full year as a professional -, establishing a rivalry with Aleksandr "⁠s1mple⁠" Kostyliev that would continue into 2020.

Just like in 2019, Vitality began the year on a shaky note as they finished third in their group in the BLAST Premier Spring Series, losing to Complexity and Natus Vincere after beating the CIS giants in their first match in London, with ZywOo being the only player in the team with an above-average rating from this stage of the tournament (1.17).

Vitality continued to be a one-man show in the following tournament, IEM Katowice, where they went out 9th-12th following defeats to FaZe and Astralis. ZywOo put up strong numbers across the board (1.24 rating, 24% higher than the team’s average, 1.38 rating and 86.8 ADR), but the early elimination saw him leave the Polish city with only a Valuable Player selection.

"I don’t know why we looked rusty. We struggled early in the season, and I wasn’t at my best individually. It took us a little while to get back to our level, and I think we were still a little exhausted from 2019, which was a pretty crazy year in terms of travel.

"The beginning of the year, when I struggled individually and we struggled as a team, was my worst memory."

Rubbing salt into the open wound was the surprising departure of in-game leader Alex "⁠ALEX⁠" McMeekin due to the team’s relentless travel schedule. Dan "⁠apEX⁠" Madesclaire took the baton from the British tactician, with Vitality recruiting 17-year-old Kévin "⁠misutaaa⁠" Rabier, an exciting prospect but with very little competitive experience. ZywOo had a somewhat quiet tournament in ESL Pro League Season 11, in which he averaged some year-low numbers (1.17 rating, 1.18 Impact and 0.74 KPR) as Vitality finished 7th-9th after losing to OG in the Play-In stage.

"It wasn't easy news to hear because we had been through a very good period with ALEX in 2019. He was our leader and it was not easy to replace him.In the beginning, it was quite complicated because a lot of things had to change, Dan (apEX) had to get used to his new role and misutaaa was still quite inexperienced at this level.

"However, Dan was already a leader for the team and it was a pretty natural transition for him in the end with the experience that he has. He's a hard worker and does an incredible job for the whole team!"

For the rest of the year, ZywOo was an almost ever-present figure on the lists of top performers from tournaments. He was second to Nicolai "⁠device⁠" Reedtz in the race for the MVP of ESL One: Road to Rio - despite Vitality finishing only fourth -, making the tournament's stats leaderboards in nine categories, including rating (1.24), ADR (83.2) and KPR (0.80). In DreamHack Masters Spring, he put up a tournament-high 1.33 rating, but his team could not go beyond the second round of the lower bracket after losing to NIP following an uncharacteristically off-colour performance from ZywOo on the final map (0.67 rating, his second-lowest of 2020).

As we entered the summer season, Vitality became more comfortable with their new system and began making deep runs in tournaments, even though titles still eluded them. ZywOo was the MVP in the team's runner-up finishes in the BLAST Spring Europe Finals, cs_summit 6 and ESL One Cologne, putting up some impressive numbers during this stretch of tournaments (1.34 rating, 1.47 Impact, 88.6 ADR, 86.0% of maps with 1.00+ ratings, and 0.83 KPR). He delivered very strong performances in the grand finals of BLAST Premier (series-high 1.56 against Complexity) and cs_summit (1.20 against BIG), and was also the best performer in the ESL One Cologne title decider (1.11 against Heroic.

"The second places were quite frustrating because we were really strong, but we were still missing something, something we needed to win a final. It was still a very good period because we were very consistent and efficient.

"Online form? As I’ve been doing since the start of my career, I don't ask myself too many questions like that. I play the game, I do what I'm asked to do, and I give my best for the team."

Vitality were unable to keep up that form as they crashed out of ESL Pro League Season 12 in the group stage with a 3-4 record. ZywOo had just two maps in the red in 17 and still put up some respectable numbers (1.20 rating and 1.27 Impact) despite the team's early exit. This was the last time in 2020 in which he was not among the standout performers of a tournament.

ZywOo returned to his best form in IEM New York, putting up some of his best numbers of the year in Vitality's semi-final run. He was second to Nikola "⁠NiKo⁠" Kovač in the race for the MVP medal with a 1.34 rating (26% higher than the team's average), 93.8 ADR, 1.54 Impact and 0.88 KPR, topping the scoreboard in all three matches, including the 0-2 defeat to eventual winners FaZe, in which he was the only Vitality player with an above-average rating (1.19).

ZywOo's fourth MVP of the year came from DreamHack Open Fall, in which Vitality fell at the last hurdle in a five-map affair against Heroic after winning their previous five matches of the tournament. The 20-year-old, who raised eyebrows with back-to-back 2.00+ rated maps against fnatic, ranked first for rating (1.33), ADR (88.9), damage difference per round (+19.0) and opening kills per round (0.16).

Vitality finally broke their duck in IEM Beijing-Haidian Europe, the first of a series of Elite events that marked the end of the season. This was the first big tournament in which the French team showed the flexibility of their six-man roster after adding Nabil "⁠Nivera⁠" Benrlitom, though it was far from an easy ride: they had to survive a group elimination series against MAD Lions and came back from a two-map deficit to beat Natus Vincere in the final.

ZywOo was below par for his usual standards in the group stage (1.26 rating), but his form improved once the tournament reached the playoffs, in which he put up 1.30+ ratings on all maps that the team won en route to the title. He was inside the top five in 12 stats leaderboards, most notably rating (1.31), deaths per round (0.55), KAST (78.8%) and opening kills per round (0.15), adding another MVP medal to his collection.

"It was an incredible feeling! On top of that, it was a hard-fought match in which we were on the brink of defeat at one point. But we were able to get back in the game and finally win a final! It's hard to describe the relief of winning this title. It was a reward for our consistency throughout the year.

"Pistol ace against NAVI? I played the round by instinct. It all happened very quickly, and with the tension of the situation, of being in a bootcamp,to get back in the game that way, it was incredible. With all the emotion, I threw my headset, which is something very rare for me.

"Nivera’s addition is a big plus for us because it brings us fresh blood and more strategic opportunities, Moreover, he is also an AWPer, which allows me to use rifles on certain maps, which I really appreciate. I was pretty surprised [with his addition] at first, but I thought it was cool. Nivera is a young player, like misutaaa and me, and we all know his potential. I was a little bit curious about how it was going to work out, but our coach explained the goals and the transition well, and in the end it was a success.

"The end of the season with Vitality, the journey we made with the whole team, winning several titles… For me that was the best memory of this year."

Vitality then made it two tournament victories in a row as they came out on top of the BLAST Fall Finals in a much more convincing fashion than in the IEM competition. They dropped just two maps over the course of the event, losing just nine rounds per map on average as they looked a class above MOUZ, BIG and Astralis. ZywOo put up some respectable numbers (1.36 rating, 1.40 impact and 91.0 ADR) to power his team to the title and scoop his sixth MVP medal of the year.

With the year about to come to an end, the race for the title of the best team of 2020 was wide open. Vitality looked to be the clear favourites heading into the IEM Global Challenge, but they were unable to make it out of the group stage after losing to BIG and the eventual champions, Astralis. ZywOo had to settle for a place among the EVPs despite posting some year-high stats, including a 1.40 rating, a 93.5 ADR and a 79.2% KAST.

"It was a really long year with a lot of tournaments. Unfortunately, we might have lacked a bit of gas in the tank to end it on a high note. We lost 2-1 to a very, very good Astralis after we had defeated them in the final of BLAST Premier. I believe it’s not easy to play multiple important matches against the same teams in such a short period of time, especially against Astralis.

"Not being the No.1 team of 2020? That’s something that I’m not really interested in. It’s a pity, but what matters is that we had a great year and we won titles! There was no Major in 2020 and that’s my only regret. I hope we can win a Major in 2021."

Why was ZywOo the best player of 2020?

ZywOo edged out s1mple in one of the closest races for the No.1 spot in the history of the HLTV Top 20 thanks to being a more impactful player in the most competitive tournaments and in the biggest matches.

He ranked second for rating (1.29), damage per round (85.8) and kills per round (0.81), while his 74.8% KAST was the third-highest overall. He was slightly ahead of the pack in terms of Impact rating (1.38), in part because of his ability to get multi-kills (21.3% of his rounds, the second-best), and also due to the high number of opening kills (0.15 per round, fourth-highest) and clutches (88 1vsX situations won, the highest).

"It's simply amazing [to be the No.1 player two years in a row]. I have no words. It would not have been possible without my team and my teammates. This is also a reward for all of us.

"s1mple had another great year, he's an incredible player. I think he could have been the No.1, it would have been just as deserved. I also think device had a great season with Astralis, and I'm happy to see him on the podium."

All this resulted in six MVP medals and four EVP awards, an unmatched feat, especially considering that they all came from Elite and Big events. He also displayed incredible consistency all year long: his lowest tournament rating was 1.17 and he had the highest percentage of maps with both 1.00+ ratings (85.4%) and 1.30+ ratings (49.8%).

If we only consider the eight Elite events, ZywOo's somewhat slower start to the year at IEM Katowice and in ESL Pro League Season 11 meant that he had "just" the second-highest rating (1.27) in tournaments of this stature. But when we also include the next four most competitive events (the three Regional Major Ranking tournaments and the BLAST Spring Europe Finals), he adds four very strong performances. This, combined with his superb play in big matches - with no big series in which he looked off-colour (1.10+ ratings in every playoff series or series in the top half of a tournament) and a 1.29 rating in Big Event playoffs, the highest overall - sees him come out ahead, albeit by a very narrow margin.

"My goal for 2021 is to carry the momentum that we had at the end of 2020 with the team, meaning to win as many tournaments as possible and always in such a good mood. I hope that we will be able to play a Major and play in LAN. I miss that very much."

Bold prediction

Not much in the way of a hot take, but ZywOo predicts a bright future for his teammate Nivera, who has averaged a 1.18 rating since joining Vitality as part of the roster’s expansion.

Nabil "⁠Nivera⁠" Benrlitom

"I think Nabil has everything to become a great player. He’s just joined us, but he’s learning very quickly. He’s already very strong and he’s getting stronger quickly. He's a very versatile and complete player who can play with the AWP and with rifles, and who can take almost any position. I think he has a chance to be in the top 20 in 2021!"

This was our ranking of the top Top 20 players of 2020. You can take a look at the Introduction article to learn more about how the players were selected. This year's ranking was supported by:

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