Who is Donk, the CS2 Shanghai Major MVP?

Team Spirit just secured its first  CS2 Major victory with star player Danil “Donk” Kryshkovets.

The CS2 Shanghai Major was undeniably a nail-biter for fans, but it was a disaster for anyone chasing the coveted Diamond coin. Most fans had their hopes pinned on G2, Mongolz, or NAVI to reach the grand final, but instead, it was FaZe and Team Spirit battling it out for the $500,000 top prize.

By the game’s end, Team Spirit dismantled Karrigan’s squad with a decisive 2-1 victory, leaving textbook betters shocked by the upset. The massive shake-up saw fans buzzing over Team Spirit’s latest MVP. Some have never even heard of Donk before, adding to the shock factor.

While the entire team performed flawlessly, all eyes are now on Donk, arguably the number one contender for the Player of the Year title.

Who is Donk in CS2?

Danil “⁠Donk⁠” Kryshkovets is a professional CS2 player currently playing for Team Spirit. Donk joined Team Spirit’s Academy roster at just 14 years old. After two years of honing his skills alongside the youth squad, the Russian prodigy was promoted to the main roster in 2023, instantly standing out as the team’s star player with jaw-dropping ratings.

Despite his stellar individual performances becoming a hot topic, Team Spirit struggled to secure major tournament victories until 2024. At IEM Katowice 2024, Team Spirit wrapped the 3-0 win against Faze, with Donk posting a 1.93 rating, top fragging across all maps.

That was the event that further pushed Donk into the spotlight. Since then, the Player has been unstoppable, cementing himself as one of the greatest at the CS2 Shanghai Major. Donk has repeated the IEM Katowice history on a bigger stage. In the main event, Donk proved more than a match for Faze once again.

Donk is the youngest MVP in CS2 history

Donk is the youngest CS2 major MVP at just 17 years old, breaking the record previously held by Markus “⁠Kjaerbye⁠” Kjærbye at the ELEAGUE Major in 2017.  He also surpassed CS2 legend s1mple’s record for the highest-rated Major MVP, earning an impressive 1.49 rating compared to s1mple’s 1.47.

Donk set yet another milestone at the Shanghai Major, breaking Egor “⁠flamie⁠” Vasilyev’s record for the most aces in a single Major with four.

Even more impressively, he’s only been playing CS2 at the highest tier for two years. Yet the young gamer has broken records set by pro players who have a legacy spanning decades. Donk has firmly entered the conversation for Player of the Year, standing shoulder-to-shoulder with CS2 legends.

Through all the accolades, Donk only focused on winning games.  When asked about his records, Donk said he’s happy about them but even happier about the team’s historic Major win. He also admitted that the POTY should go to someone who “showed more stable results.” Donk reminded the interviewer that he failed at two previous events before the Shanghai Major.

Fans praised the player’s humility, a quality that many feel is in short supply at the highest levels of play. Donk has all the momentum in the world to become one of CS2’s GOATs. With the right attitude, Donk will be in the esports conversation for years to come.