jL Says w0nderful Is Better Than sh1ro, Names Him Top-3 CS2 AWPer

Justinas "jL" Lekavicius has placed former Natus Vincere teammate Ihor "w0nderful" Zhdanov among the three best AWPers in Counter-Strike 2, arguing that the Ukrainian is currently better than Spirit sniper Dmitry "sh1ro" Sokolov.

Speaking during a Twitch stream, jL named Mathieu "ZywOo" Herbaut and Ilya "m0NESY" Osipov as the only two AWPers he would put above w0nderful right now. He acknowledged that his friendship with w0nderful could influence his view, but maintained that he genuinely rates the NAVI sniper ahead of sh1ro.

The comments arrive during an impressive 2026 for w0nderful. NAVI have already won ESL Pro League Season 23 and IEM Atlanta, with w0nderful starring in both runs and earning the first HLTV MVP award of his career in Atlanta.

Quick Summary

Detail	Information
Main claim	jL believes w0nderful is currently better than sh1ro
jL's top three AWPers	ZywOo, m0NESY, w0nderful
w0nderful	Natus Vincere
sh1ro	Spirit
Other AWPer discussed	molodoy
s1mple assessment	jL declined to rank him top three based on his current level of tier-one opposition
Source	jL's Twitch stream, reported by Cybersport.ru
Date reported	August 13, 2026
Status	Direct player opinion, reported from livestream

What did jL say about w0nderful and sh1ro?

During his stream, jL was asked to discuss the strongest AWPers in the current CS2 landscape.

His answer placed w0nderful firmly inside the top three.

According to Cybersport.ru's transcript, jL said that only ZywOo and m0NESY are currently ahead of the NAVI sniper. He emphasized that he was discussing present form rather than an all-time ranking.

When the comparison moved specifically to sh1ro, jL backed his former NAVI teammate.

"I really think w0nderful is stronger than sh1ro."

jL admitted that he could be biased because w0nderful is his best friend. Nevertheless, he maintained his assessment, while also describing sh1ro as a very intelligent player.

His approximate hierarchy from the discussion was therefore:

1. ZywOo / m0NESY — the two AWPers jL considers better than w0nderful

2. w0nderful — clear top-three pick

3. sh1ro / molodoy — placed around the next tier in jL's assessment

The source did not establish a strict ordering between ZywOo and m0NESY, or between sh1ro and molodoy, so presenting either pair as an exact No. 1/No. 2 or No. 4/No. 5 ranking would go beyond what jL actually said.

jL's w0nderful vs sh1ro comparison

Player	jL's assessment	Current team	Context
ZywOo	Above w0nderful	Vitality	One of the two AWPers jL named ahead
m0NESY	Above w0nderful	Falcons	One of the two AWPers jL named ahead
w0nderful	Top three	NAVI	jL's preferred player in the direct comparison
sh1ro	Below w0nderful	Spirit	Praised by jL as a smart player
molodoy	Not above w0nderful	FURIA	Grouped around the next tier by jL
s1mple	Not ranked top three currently	TBD	jL said he lacked enough recent tier-one opposition to evaluate him that highly

Important: This table summarizes jL's personal opinion from the stream. It is not an objective CS2News.com player ranking.

Why jL's w0nderful vs sh1ro comparison is notable

The comparison carries more weight than a routine player-ranking debate because w0nderful and sh1ro have long had stylistic similarities as AWPers.

When NAVI signed w0nderful in 2023, HLTV's profile of the Ukrainian highlighted his calm, patient approach. Former teammate Patsi even pointed to sh1ro when discussing comparable AWPers, describing a style built around supportive early-round AWPing, survival and clutch situations.

That makes jL's comparison particularly interesting: it is not simply a choice between two players performing completely different jobs.

There is also significant personal context behind his opinion.

jL and w0nderful played together on NAVI, giving the Lithuanian direct experience of how w0nderful communicates, reacts under pressure and operates inside a tier-one system. At the same time, jL explicitly acknowledged that their friendship could make him biased.

His statement should therefore be read as an informed player's assessment rather than definitive proof that one AWPer is objectively stronger.

w0nderful's 2026 form strengthens the argument

There is a clear competitive reason why w0nderful has entered conversations about the elite AWPers of 2026.

NAVI won ESL Pro League Season 23 in March, defeating Aurora 3-1 in the grand final. w0nderful was the standout player in the deciding series, finishing with an HLTV Rating 3.0 of 1.56 and seven clutches across the four maps.

His season reached another milestone at IEM Atlanta.

NAVI won the tournament after beating GamerLegion in the final, while w0nderful finished the event with a 1.31 rating and a 1.36 playoff rating. The performance earned him the first HLTV MVP medal of his career.

Those results provide meaningful context for jL's claim. His assessment is not based solely on w0nderful's potential or their time together on NAVI; it comes during a season in which the Ukrainian has delivered tournament-winning performances.

sh1ro remains central to Spirit's elite level

jL's preference for w0nderful should not be interpreted as dismissing sh1ro's level.

The Spirit AWPer remains part of one of the world's strongest teams, and his individual ceiling has continued to appear in high-level matches.

At IEM Krakow in February 2026, for example, sh1ro produced a 1.88 series rating as Spirit defeated MOUZ 2-0 in the third-place match.

Spirit also held the No. 1 position in Valve's global ranking during multiple snapshots across the middle of 2026. On July 15, Spirit led the ranking with 2,025 Valve points, while NAVI sat fourth with 1,853.

Team ranking alone cannot decide an individual AWPer comparison, but it illustrates why putting w0nderful clearly ahead of sh1ro is a substantial claim rather than an obvious consensus choice.

Player role analysis: two patient elite AWPers

One reason the w0nderful-sh1ro discussion has lasting analytical value is the similarity between their historical profiles.

HLTV's 2023 feature on w0nderful described him as a player capable of combining speed with precision but also highlighted his traditionally calm and patient approach. His game changed during his period with Sprout, where he was given more freedom to function as a carry AWPer.

The same feature connected his earlier style directly with sh1ro's approach: conserving life, supporting the team early in rounds and becoming especially dangerous in late-round situations.

Their roles have evolved with their respective teams since then, so a direct tactical comparison requires current map-by-map data that was not provided in jL's comments.

Still, the historical similarity makes the debate more meaningful than simply comparing headline statistics.

Timeline: w0nderful, sh1ro and jL

Date	Development
Summer 2023	Spirit bench w0nderful before his eventual move to Sprout
October 2023	NAVI sign w0nderful during s1mple's break from competition
December 2023	Spirit officially sign sh1ro
2024	jL and w0nderful compete together during NAVI's successful season
July 2025	jL steps away from NAVI's active lineup
March 15, 2026	NAVI win ESL Pro League Season 23, with w0nderful starring in the final
April 18, 2026	MOUZ announce jL on a short-term loan from NAVI
May 2026	w0nderful wins IEM Atlanta and earns his first HLTV MVP
July 1, 2026	jL officially leaves NAVI and becomes a free agent
August 13, 2026	jL's comments ranking w0nderful above sh1ro are reported

The historical roster and tournament milestones are supported by HLTV reporting.

Impact analysis

Impact on w0nderful

There is no direct competitive consequence from jL's comments, but they add another layer to w0nderful's growing reputation in 2026.

Winning tournaments is one thing; being named alongside ZywOo and m0NESY by a former elite teammate adds peer recognition to his recent results.

The stronger evidence remains his server performance, particularly the ESL Pro League Season 23 final and IEM Atlanta MVP run.

Impact on sh1ro

There is similarly no roster or competitive consequence for sh1ro.

The quote instead feeds into a broader debate over how CS2's elite AWPers should be evaluated: raw output, consistency, team success, clutch impact, tactical responsibility or peak tournament performances.

Tactical impact

None.

jL was expressing an individual ranking rather than announcing a tactical, roster or role change.

Tournament impact

None directly.

The comments do, however, give future NAVI-Spirit meetings an additional storyline because their AWPers now have an explicit public comparison from jL.

Ranking/VRS impact

None caused by the statement.

As historical context, Spirit were No. 1 and NAVI No. 4 in the Valve ranking published for July 15, 2026.

No individual-player conclusion should be drawn directly from those team positions.

What changes now?

Nothing changes operationally for NAVI or Spirit because of jL's comments.

w0nderful remains NAVI's AWPer and sh1ro remains Spirit's sniper based on the latest verified roster information used for this article. Valve ranking data from July also lists w0nderful in NAVI's five-man lineup and sh1ro with Spirit.

The main change is narrative.

w0nderful's 2026 results have made the question of whether he belongs alongside CS2's very best AWPers increasingly relevant, and jL has now given an unusually clear answer.

What to watch next

The best way to test jL's assessment will be through the remainder of the 2026 season.

The most relevant indicators will be w0nderful and sh1ro's performances against elite opposition, playoff consistency, direct NAVI-Spirit encounters and individual impact at the year's biggest tournaments.

Another major MVP-level event from w0nderful would strengthen the argument that his 2026 rise represents sustained elite form rather than a short peak.

sh1ro, meanwhile, has an opportunity to answer the comparison entirely on the server as Spirit continue competing near the top of the international scene.

Next NAVI event: TBD
Next Spirit event: TBD
Next NAVI vs. Spirit match: TBD

These fields should be updated when confirmed tournament schedules are available.

Related teams, players and events

Players

• jL — former NAVI player whose Twitch comments sparked the comparison

• w0nderful — NAVI AWPer ranked top three by jL

• sh1ro — Spirit AWPer whom jL placed below w0nderful

• ZywOo — one of the two AWPers jL considers better than w0nderful

• m0NESY — the other AWPer jL placed above w0nderful

• molodoy — another sniper discussed during the stream

• s1mple — discussed but not placed in jL's current top three

Teams

• Natus Vincere (NAVI) — w0nderful's team

• Spirit — sh1ro's team

• Vitality — ZywOo's team

• Falcons — m0NESY's team

• FURIA — molodoy's team

Relevant 2026 events

• ESL Pro League Season 23

• IEM Atlanta 2026

• IEM Krakow 2026

Historical comparison: w0nderful and sh1ro

The careers of w0nderful and sh1ro also contain an interesting Spirit connection.

w0nderful previously represented Spirit before being benched in 2023. sh1ro later joined Spirit in December of that year, replacing ArtFr0st in the starting lineup.

w0nderful subsequently moved through Sprout before joining NAVI, where he developed into a Major-winning AWPer and, in 2026, an HLTV MVP.

Their paths therefore provide a natural long-term comparison: two AWPers connected to Spirit, both known historically for patient elements in their games, who developed into leading snipers for rival elite teams.

FAQ

Did jL say w0nderful is better than sh1ro?

Yes. During a Twitch stream, jL said he genuinely believes w0nderful is currently better than sh1ro, while acknowledging that his friendship with w0nderful could make him biased.

Who are jL's top three CS2 AWPers?

jL said w0nderful is currently a top-three AWPer and that only ZywOo and m0NESY are above him. The source does not establish whether jL ranks ZywOo or m0NESY first.

What did jL say about sh1ro?

jL called sh1ro a very intelligent player but said he still believes w0nderful is better. He grouped sh1ro and molodoy around the tier immediately below his top three.

Why does jL rate w0nderful so highly?

jL did not provide a detailed statistical argument in the reported comments. His opinion comes amid strong 2026 form from w0nderful, including NAVI's ESL Pro League Season 23 victory and an MVP-winning performance at IEM Atlanta.

Did jL rank s1mple in the top three?

No. When asked about s1mple, jL said he could not currently put him in the top three because he had not played enough of the majority of tier-one opposition for jL to make that assessment.