Best CS2 Players 2025: donk, ZywOo & the Battle for the Throne

The competitive CS2 pro scene has entered a new chapter, and the battle for the title of the best CS2 players has never been fiercer. In this analytical ranking from Farmskins, we highlight the Top 10 CS2 players 2025 who have adapted to the new mechanics of Counter-Strike 2 and achieved impressive results during the first two years of the game’s competitive era.

Some of these players carried their form over from CS:GO, while others fully unlocked their potential only in CS2. This ranking is based on Major tournament stats, HLTV ratings, and overall performance context in the CS2 esports scene.

Senzu, flameZ, XANTARES, NiKo, b1t, m0NESY, ropz, sh1ro, ZywOo, donk, Conclusion

Senzu 

The brightest star of The MongolZ is only 18, yet he has already left a mark. At BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025, Senzu set a new CS2 Major record for kills: in a decisive map against G2, he dropped 36 kills in regulation and 56 overall, carrying his team into the playoffs almost single-handedly with a 1.61 rating. Later, he helped The MongolZ win the Esports World Cup 2025, sealing the final against Aurora with a stunning Desert Eagle triple-kill on Nuke. Across three maps, he recorded 61 kills with a 1.40 rating. While The MongolZ is built on strong team chemistry, Senzu emerged as their only true superstar — and that earned him a place in our top 10.

flameZ 

Israeli rifler Shahar “flameZ” Shushan debuted in the HLTV Top 20 in 2024, landing at 7th place. Analysts highlighted his strong stats against elite opponents: his 1.11 overall rating improved to 1.16 at Elite+ events and 1.15 at Super-Elite+ tournaments, while he maintained a 1.10 rating against top-5 teams. He was even better in arena matches — 1.13 rating with four EVP awards at top events such as the Copenhagen Major, BLAST Spring Final, IEM Cologne, and BLAST Fall Final. His relatively low kills-per-round (0.68) kept him from ranking higher. In Vitality, flameZ is often overshadowed by superstars ZywOo and ropz, but his contribution to the team’s success is crucial.

XANTARES 

Turkish rifler Ismailcan “XANTARES” Dörtkardeş reached the top of the world only at 29, thanks to his strong individual performances and EVP awards at the Copenhagen Major and ESL Pro League S20. In CS2, he remains consistent: Aurora/Eternal Fire reached four finals, losing only to highly experienced teams. At the EWC 2025, he scored 56 kills with a 1.25 rating, although his team was eventually crushed by The MongolZ. Despite the lack of major trophies, XANTARES remains one of the most reliable aimers on the scene.

NiKo

Bosnian rifler Nikola “NiKo” Kovač has long been one of the greatest riflers in history, and in CS2 he continues to deliver with remarkable consistency. 2024 marked a record-breaking year for him, as he became the first player to appear in the HLTV Top 20 for ten consecutive years. However, the debate around NiKo always circles back to one fact: he still hasn’t won a Major, despite outstanding individual performances and GOAT-level status among riflers. In 2025, he left G2 to build a new roster around young stars and a veteran coach, but the elusive trophy remains out of reach. Still, his personal performance remains elite and sets the standard for consistency.

b1t 

Ukrainian rifler Valeriy “b1t” Vakhovskyy has been the cornerstone of NAVI’s success in CS2. In 2024, NAVI shocked the scene by winning the PGL Major Copenhagen, later reaching six more finals and securing three titles. HLTV ranked b1t 9th in 2024, highlighting his EVP awards at IEM Cologne, ESL Pro League S20, and IEM Rio, along with an MVP title at the Esports World Cup. Over five years on the main roster, b1t has established himself as a reliable clutcher and key player around whom the team is built. Even though NAVI’s 2025 results have been less impressive, Vakhovskyy remains the only guaranteed starter in the lineup.

m0NESY

Russian AWPer Ilya “m0NESY” Osipov was one of the standout stars in CS2’s debut year. He finished 2024 as the second-best player in the world according to HLTV — a rise that saw him go from 7th in 2022 to 4th in 2023 and finally 2nd in 2024. Osipov has repeatedly said that the AWP remains a powerful tool in CS2 and that success depends on how it’s utilized. Although G2 failed to secure major titles in 2025, m0NESY continues to be one of the most dangerous snipers in the game, often carrying matches on his own.

ropz

Estonian lurker Robin “ropz” Kool is the most decorated CS2 player so far. He won the PGL Major Antwerp 2022 during the CS:GO era and added two more Major titles in CS2, including the BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025 with Vitality. His transfer from FaZe to Vitality in January 2025 was widely regarded as a masterstroke: the team immediately won IEM Katowice and continued to dominate. Ropz is the only player to have appeared in all three CS2 Major finals (Copenhagen 2024, Shanghai 2024, Austin 2025) and has claimed 11 trophies in CS2. His career earnings exceed $1.3 million, and he has been a fixture in the HLTV Top 20 for years. In Vitality, ropz complements ZywOo and flameZ perfectly, adding versatility and experience to the lineup.

sh1ro 

Russian AWPer Dmitriy “sh1ro” Sokolov took a big risk when he left Cloud9 early in the CS2 era to join Team Spirit. He believed in the team’s potential and wanted to grow under coaches chopper and hally. The gamble paid off: Spirit immediately won IEM Katowice, where sh1ro earned his first EVP award and maintained a high rating throughout the event. HLTV ranked him 6th in 2024 thanks to his impressive stats and multiple EVP awards. Now in his fourth consecutive year in the Top 20, sh1ro might not be the team’s primary star anymore — that title belongs to young phenom donk — but together they form the most dangerous duo in CS2.

ZywOo

French prodigy Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut has long been in the GOAT conversation, and the transition to CS2 only solidified his status. In 2025, Vitality won seven tournaments in a row, with ZywOo collecting seven consecutive MVP awards, including one for BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025 — his second Major title and 20th MVP at big events. At IEM Dallas 2025, he claimed another MVP with a 1.52 rating in the final against MOUZ, marking his 26th career MVP and 19th at a Big Event. In total, ZywOo boasts 27 MVPs and three HLTV Player of the Year titles. He remains the most consistent player in CS2 — no rival, not even NiKo or sh1ro, matches his level of dominance.

donk

The newest superstar, Danil “donk” Kryshkovets, has completely reshaped the CS2 meta in just two years. Instead of AWPers dominating the scene, donk, a rifler, became the game’s main protagonist. At Shanghai Major 2024, Spirit defeated FaZe, and the 17-year-old donk earned MVP honors with a record 1.49 rating and a +97 kill differential. In the final, he posted 30 kills with a 1.98 rating on Dust2, becoming the youngest Major MVP in history. In 2025, he hasn’t slowed down: by August, he had collected 10 MVP titles, seven of them at Big Events. Spirit claimed titles at IEM Cologne and BLAST Bounty Season 2 with a 19-1 map record, and the team admits that only beating Vitality remains on their checklist to become the best. At just 18, donk is already on par with legends in MVP count — and could soon surpass ZywOo if Vitality’s dominance falters.

How ZywOo Surpassed s1mple in CS

Conclusion

CS2 has already given fans new stories and new heroes. Some, like ZywOo and sh1ro, remained at the top, while others — like donk and Senzu — reached elite status only after the new version launched. Over two years, the meta has shifted toward aggressive riflers, and it’s fitting that donk leads our Farmskins ranking, proving that dominance is no longer limited to AWPers. As we enter 2026, the competition promises to intensify even further, with the epic rivalry between Spirit and Vitality — and their record-breaking stars — at its heart.