m0NESY on NiKo as a mentor: He made me do things that I didn’t want to do and he’s right
The 17-year-old Russian superstar reveals what his relationship with NiKo is like.
On Tuesday, 17-year-old Ilya “m0NESY” Osipov got rewarded for his exceptional debut year in the pro scene of Counter-Strike, with a #7 place finish on HLTV’s Top 20 World Player Ranking.
At the beginning of 2022, m0NESY went from being a NAVI Junior player, playing in the WePlay Academy League to becoming one of G2’s most important key pieces on the roster. And it’s fair to say that the 17-year-old wonderkid hasn’t been looking back since.
In G2’s rather turbulent 2022 year which kicked off with a Grand final spot at the IEM Katowice, there have been three roster changes, including a change of the coach position. Even though m0NESY and company didn’t manage to secure a ticket to the IEM Rio Major in Brazil, they still saw themselves finishing the year on a high note with a 1st place finish at the BLAST Premier World Final, where they took home the trophy and $500.000 in prize earnings.
m0NESY was able to stay consistent throughout his rookie year, in which he showed deadly efficiency and impressive plays against the best players in the world. In the four big tournaments m0NESY participated in, the 17-year-old Russian AWPer delivered an average rating of 1.17. When he was up against one of the world’s best five teams, m0NESY averaged an impressive 1.22 Rating.
In an interview with HLTV, m0NESY revealed that G2’s Bosnian superstar, Nikola “NiKo” Kovac, has helped him become confident on the server. NiKo’s close relationship with the rookie has not only created a deadly duo, but also unmatchable firepower within the squad which many teams struggle against.
“Yeah, we have good relationships with NiKo. He’s an insane player, and a good friend in real life. He’s the guy who wants me to destroy everyone, to be the best, to prove myself. Because of him, I fixed a lot of stuff, so many things we worked on, you just can’t imagine.”
The 25-year-old Bosnian has been a mentor for m0NESY during his rookie year, and the 17-year-old Russian AWPer admitted that things he didn’t want to do on the server, NiKo made him do to make the team better and fast up his development as a Top Tier Counter-Strike player.
“He made me do things that I didn’t want to do and he’s right. I wouldn’t say I was nervous to play with NiKo for the first time, it was just a different experience. They have been playing at this level for a long time and for me, it’s the first year.”
The 17-year-old Russian delivered one of 2022’s most flashy highlights – Watch it right here:
