ash praises Wicadia’s preparation as Aurora build on StarSeries breakthrough

Ashley “ash” Battye sees encouraging progress in Wicadia’s adjustment to Aurora’s international lineup, particularly in preparation and utility knowledge. Speaking after the team’s opening victory at ESL Pro League Season 24, the coach highlighted the young rifler’s growing comfort within the system.

“He's paying so much attention in preparation now,” ash said.

Aurora defeated 9z 2–0 in Katowice on October 3, and Wicadia led the team with a 1.50 rating. That performance followed a StarSeries campaign in which Aurora beat NAVI and Vitality before finishing runners-up.

The challenge now is to carry that level into another tournament. Aurora have evidence that they can beat elite opposition, alongside a recent final that showed how quickly those same opponents can punish them.

Wicadia delivers in the opening series

Against 9z, Wicadia finished with 40 kills, 24 deaths, 93.5 ADR and 80.0% KAST. His +16 kill differential was Aurora’s best, while his rating topped all ten players.

Aurora player statistics against 9z — ESL Pro League Season 24

The result put Aurora at 1–0 in the Swiss stage. They won 9z’s Dust2 pick 13–3 and closed their own Mirage pick 13–11, winning 26 of the series’ 40 rounds.

One opening match cannot establish a lasting improvement. It does, however, give Aurora a productive starting point after the disappointment of their previous final.

Adapting his instincts to a different system

According to ash, communicating rapid decisions in another language initially complicated Wicadia’s timing-based play. Moving toward greater structure also required adjustment. The coach now sees stronger engagement with preparation, including Wicadia helping teammates remember planned utility.

That distinction matters for an aggressive rifler. A timing play needs teammates to understand when support is required; preparation can reduce how much must be explained during the round. Learning the shared setup should make those decisions easier to coordinate, although the available match statistics cannot measure that communication directly.

The useful question over the coming series is whether Wicadia can repeat the impact he produced against 9z when opponents give him fewer opportunities.

StarSeries supplied the results Aurora needed

Aurora’s last five completed series before their second EPL match produced four wins and a 9–4 map record.

Aurora’s five most recent completed series before facing Falcons

Against NAVI, Aurora won Nuke 13–8 and Mirage 13–7. Their next victory required more endurance: after beating NRG 13–7 on Cache, they needed overtime to finish Mirage 19–17.

Vitality then provided the strongest comparison. Aurora won the upper final through Anubis and Nuke, with Jimpphat recording 53–34, 91.5 ADR and a 1.39 rating. Wicadia contributed a 1.22 rating and 80.0% KAST.

Those performances show that Aurora’s recent success has included meaningful contributions from both riflers against top opposition. The team’s progress cannot be judged solely from the comfortable Dust2 score against 9z.

The rematch exposed the remaining gap

Vitality won the StarSeries grand final 3–1, taking Anubis 13–4, Mirage 13–4 and Cache 13–7. Aurora’s only map victory came on Inferno, 13–11.

The reversal on Anubis was particularly sharp: Aurora had won it 13–7 the previous day. A successful series clearly did not guarantee that their approach would hold through a longer rematch.

Mirage also deserves attention. Aurora won it against NAVI and NRG, lost heavily to Vitality, then edged 9z. Across those four recent appearances, the 3–1 record contains very different levels of control. The overtime against NRG and narrow EPL win make consistency a more useful target than simply adding another victory to the map record.

Jimpphat’s freedom and XANTARES’ pressure

Ash wants Jimpphat to become less predictable through greater initiative, while viewing his independence in defensive positions as useful for Wicadia. “We need to take risks. You need to have a presence,” he said.

He also wants to ease XANTARES’ self-imposed pressure rather than expect him to solve every game through aim. Together, those priorities suggest an effort to spread responsibility across the lineup.

That is a sensible direction for a team pursuing repeatable results. Aurora need several players capable of creating an advantage, and enough coordination to preserve it once it arrives.

Falcons provide the next test

Aurora’s next scheduled opponent is Falcons on October 4 in the 1–0 Swiss pool. Falcons enter the matchup ranked fifth, with Aurora ninth.

Wicadia’s opening performance gives him a strong platform. Against Falcons, Aurora will need to turn that individual impact into another series win and a 2–0 position in the group stage.