- G2 dominated NaVi on both maps played
- The European team now moves on to the event’s semi-finals
- NaVi has already qualified for the IEM Katowice semi-finals
G2 did not let NaVi score more than single digits on the two maps played, which grants the European roster a spot at the IEM Katowice semi-finals
G2 Defeats NaVi
G2 has been on the roll this year and their most recent achievement was a dominant defeat over Natus Vincere, a win that secures G2 a semi-final spot at IEM Katowice. The European team limited their Ukrainian adversaries to single digits on both maps played, ending the match with a dominant 2-0.
NaVi’s total defeat is even more painful, considering the team was not able to get revenge from when G2 beat them at the qualifications for BLAST Premier Spring Final about a week ago. For G2, the latest victory means that the team might be able to win their second S-tier event in a row.
“Counter-Strike is a game of confidence, and we got loads of it after the World Final,” said Nemanja “huNter-” Kovač, explaining that the BLAST victory was key in G2’s form and current performance. The European roster now moves straight to the Katowice semi-finals, where they will face the winners from the match between Liquid and Vitality.
Despite the loss, NaVi are still staying strong in the tournament, having already qualified for the IEM Katowice playoffs after defeating Liquid. Now, the Ukrainian team will have to face either reigning Major champions Outsiders, or underdogs Complexity in the quarter-finals.
Here’s How the Game Went
G2’s domination of NaVi started immediately on Inferno with the European team winning the pistol round and four more rounds for a starting score of 5-0. Thanks to Valeriy “b1t” Vakhovskiy’s saved AK, NaVi finally won their first round, but did not manage to capitalize on that. Both teams then traded back and forth which concluded with a 3-7 scoreline when G2’s economy was finally broken.
Despite that, G2 once again took the initiative in the next round when they successfully stacked on A. G2 then won four more rounds in a row to grab a dominating 12-3 lead by the end of the first half. NaVi’s only shining player was b1t who had 14 kills, seven more than his next-best teammate.
With such a big difference in score, the pressure was on NaVi. The Ukrainian team won the pistol round at the start of the second half and continued that momentum for five whole rounds. But just as it seemed NaVi’s fortunes have changed, G2 finally won their first round thanks to a pistol-only rush on A. Three rounds in a row followed and G2 were soon on map point. The final blow was struck by G2’s Ilya “m0NESY” Osipov, who netted an impressive quad-kill on the AWP, bringing Inferno to a 16-8 end in favor of G2.
Nuke, the second map, started in much the same way Inferno’s second half had, with NaVi winning the first pistol round and getting four more rounds for a stable 5-0 lead. However, G2 had warmed up and ended NaVi’s streak with a three-round streak of their own.
NaVi’s Andrii “npl” Kukharskyi then took the initiative back to his team with an impressive 1vs2 clutch. G2 responded by taking one round before the European combine lost another eco round that put Natus Vincere 7-4 up. Seeing NaVi gaining momentum, G2 woke up and got four consecutive rounds, ending the first half with a very slight 8-7 lead.
The final half was a whole different story as NaVi seemed to have just given up. G2 was unrelenting and kept up streaking rounds, finishing the game with a flawless seven-round streak for the final score on Nike standing at 16-7.
By defeating NaVi 2-0, G2 continues to the semifinals of the IEM Katowice.
