device: "This is a really good indication of what we can do"

The Danish AWPer was overjoyed after his team picked up its first series win under cadiaN.

Astralis pulled off the first upset of the BLAST World Final, taking down world No. 1 Natus Vincere convincingly in a two-map affair. It was the first series win for the Danish team since Casper "⁠cadiaN⁠" Møller's arrival following losses to Vitality, Spirit, HEROIC and Virtus.pro in his first two tournament appearances.

For Nicolai "⁠device⁠" Reedtz, who put in a 1.50 rating, this result is "a good indicator" of where his team stands, but he warned everyone not to get carried away. "It's just a best-of-three win, and we have a lot more to test and see what's working and so on down here," he told HLTV after the series.

Astralis are now one victory away from the semi-finals, and device admitted that his team views its tournament chances differently now. Still, they are focused on the process, rather than results. "I feel that if we can beat NAVI and play the way we did today consistently, of course we can challenge the teams here."

You can listen to the interview on the widget above or by clicking here.

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Many expected a 2-0 victory, but certainly not in your favor. How does it feel to get a victory like this?

It's a really good feeling. We didn't have that many result-oriented expectations going into the tournament, but we lived up to a lot of the things that we talked about, in regards to how we want to play. So, yeah, it feels really good.

It's your first series win under cadiaN. How important is it, considering that we're entering a crucial moment in the season with the RMR and the Major coming up?

I think for most teams this is a tournament where you can kind of see where you're at, what you need to work on and if you are feeling ready going into the Major. So of course it means a lot. Having a good result here is just a good indicator, but you can't really be complacent, either. It's just a best-of-three win, and we have a lot more to test and see what's working and so on down here.

How confident were you heading into the series? Because NAVI looked a little bit lost at times on Nuke, they lost a lot of close rounds, and Mirage is one of their best maps. How confident were you heading into this one?

We knew it was going to be an open game. I think every time you have a long travel and you have the first game, it's always… It's not hard to be ready for the game like a professional, but there are still a lot of other outside factors, with jet lag and everything, that can affect players. So we knew that if we did our thing, tried to get some good sleep, good nutrition and stuff like that, we could maybe have a little bit of an edge. But as you said, they were quite the favorites in this matchup. We didn't really think too much about who we were going to face. It was more about what we wanted to achieve on the server.

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I was talking to B1ad3 yesterday, and he said that of all the teams here, you were probably the one that was the least difficult. Do you think that they maybe underestimated you a little bit or was it more about the combination of the fact that they didn't have a lot of time to prep for this tournament, according to B1ad3, and the fact that they didn't have a lot of material on you guys on certain maps?

Objectively looking at this tournament, you have seven teams that are probably really close to each other and then we're maybe the black sheep a little bit, so I can understand those comments. I don't feel too frustrated about that at all. I mean, it's kind of a free tournament for us because there are no outside expectations for us playing here.

On paper and in our own minds, we view ourselves as a team that needs to be able to challenge for titles, with the players we have. I don't mind too much if people don't see us as having reached that yet because we haven't really done much other than winning a best-of-one. So yeah, it's all about the work that happens behind the scenes.

In Rio, you said that cadiaN's system was something that still needed some time. Now that you've had more time playing under him, do you feel more comfortable in the game?

Definitely need still more time. I think it's just how it is, with these national teams. I think you have to get on the same page and challenge these international teams that are built on firepower and so on. It takes some time to be able to play out of the normal systems that most teams play in. Of course, this is a really good indication of what we can do. And we've had a lot of good practices and stuff like that. It's hard to say.

stavn seems to have had a bit of a resurgence under cadiaN. How do you feel about him in the server compared to before, when it was blameF and then you leading the team? Do you think he has more room to shine now?

I think maybe the room is the same, but I think he feels more comfortable. I think he kind of grew up in this system, and I think that's also one of the things that I notice sometimes, that he, jabbi and cadiaN are already on the same page, and me and Staehr have to kind of like catch up sometimes. He just knows more what cadiaN thinks on the spot and that's also something that requires time. But he's for sure playing better. I think he's been playing well the entire time, especially in practice and stuff. I'm just happy to see him thrive.

It's no secret that cadiaN hurt his arm before the tournament. How is he dealing with this? In this match, he was getting some frags, even with the AWP.

(laughs) I can't comment too much about it other than yes, he hurt his arm.

You've gained some much-needed momentum with this victory. With that in mind, do you look at your tournament chances here differently?

I think it changes a little bit. I think now we have the opportunity to play for the semi-final instead of just for survival, and that also means we will have two more games here, which is just really good practice and prep for us going into the RMR. I feel that if we can beat NAVI and play the way we did today consistently, of course we can challenge the teams here. Of course, it's about taking on the challenges we've set as a team in terms of how we want to play and how we want to react and be as a team in the server and outside of the server. And if we live up to that, as we did today, I think we are a really strong competitor.