Posts

,

IEM Rio 2023: Group A Upper & Lower Bracket Finals

IEM Rio 2023 is turning hot as we turn to some of the bigger matches tonight. We are at the business end of Group A. With BIG facing NaVi and NIP going against Heroic, we have two top matchups of this tournament. With high stakes on the line, we take a look at the matches and come up with predictions for these two matchups in group A of IEM Rio 2023.

IEM Rio 2023: Group A

Group A of IEM Rio 2023 started off with some top world-class teams. The likes of Heroic, BIG, MOUZ, NIP and NaVi are all in group A. But now it’s time for the upper and lower bracket semifinals. BIG will be facing Natus Vincere in the upper bracket final first and then Heroic will be going against Ninjas In Pyjamas.

BIG vs. Natus Vincere

Rosters

BIG
  • Johannes ‘tabseN’ Wodarz
  • Josef ‘faveN’ Baumann
  • Karim ‘Krimbo’ Moussa
  • Nils ‘k1to’ Gruhne
  • Marcel ‘hyped‘ Köhn
NaVi
  • Oleksandr ‘s1mple’ Kostyljev
  • Denis ‘electroNic’ Sharipov
  • Ilya ‘Perfecto’ Zalutskiy
  • Valerij ‘b1t’ Vakhovsjkyj
  • Andrij ‘npl’ Kukharsjkyj

Our Prediction

NaVi vs BIG seems to be a bit of a straightforward matchup in our opinion. NaVi has won four of their last five competitive matches while BIG has won only two. The last time the two teams faced each other was at the IEM Rio Major 2022 where NaVi won 2-0. The NaVi team looks stronger on paper and has a better recent form heading into this match. So, we predict a win for NaVi tonight and they’ll be moving forward to the next stage of the tournament.

Ninjas in Pyjamas vs Heroic

Rosters

NIP
  • Fredrik ‘REZ’ Sterner
  • Ludvig ‘Brollan’ Brolin
  • Aleksi ‘Aleksib’ Virolainen
  • Danyyl ‘headtr1ck’ Valitov
  • Kristian ‘k0nfig’ Wienecke
Heroic
  • Martin ‘stavn’ Lund
  • Casper ‘cadiaN’ Møller
  • René ‘TeSeS’ Madsen
  • Rasmus ‘sjuush’ Beck
  • Jakob ‘Jabbi’ Nygaard

Our Prediction

NIP vs Heroic is a bit of a tricky matchup in our opinion. NIP has a better form going into this match winning three of their last five matches. Heroic has a decent form as well winning four of their last six matches. The last time the two teams have faced each other was at the BLAST Premier Fall Finals 2022. Heroic won that matchup 2-1. But it’s NIP that won 3/3 series before that. While this matchup can go any way, we predict a win for Heroic.

Both NIP and NaVi would look forward to making it into the next round of IEM Rio 2023 as they had done so in their first matches. Let’s see what the night has in store for them!

/by
,

NIP & NaVi Begin IEM Rio 2023 With Wins

You know what the best part is about competitive Counter-Strike? The fact that there’s almost always a top tier tournament going on. With the IEM Rio 2023 kicking off today, that means another tournament full of action, drama and much more! Good news for NIP & NaVi fans is that their teams started off the tournament picking up wins.

NIP & NaVi Wins Their Opening Matches

NIP vs Imperial Esports

Rosters

NIP
  • Fredrik ‘REZ’ Sterner
  • Ludvig ‘Brollan’ Brolin
  • Aleksi ‘Aleksib’ Virolainen
  • Danyyl ‘headtr1ck’ Valitov
  • Kristian ‘k0nfig’ Wienecke
Imperial Esports
  • Gabriel ‘FalleN’ Toledo
  • Ricardo ‘boltz’ Prass
  • Vinicius ‘VINI’ Figueiredo
  • Marcelo ‘chelo’ Cespedes
  • Jhonatan ‘JOTA’ Wilian

Map Picks & Bans

  1. Imperial removed Vertigo
  2. Ninjas in Pyjamas removed Overpass
  3. Ninjas in Pyjamas removed Inferno
  4. Imperial removed Nuke
  5. Imperial removed Anubis
  6. Ninjas in Pyjamas removed Ancient
  7. Mirage was left over

The Match

It was Mongolia vs the rest of Europe in the first match of IEM Rio 2023. With Mirage being the battleground, both teams looked to move to the upper bracket semifinals from group A.

The Ninjas started off the map winning the first two pistol rounds. But Imperial responded right after picking up the next 3 rounds without flinching. It was then NIP’s turn to pick up consecutive rounds as they won the next 4. For the rest of the first half, it was pretty much NIP domination. The first half ended 11-4 in favor of Ninjas in Pyjamas. In the second half, there was little to show from the side of Imperial Esports. They won only one round in the second half as NIP finished off the map 16-5. It was Brollan that really stood out on NIP’s first match of the tournament.

NaVi vs The Mongolz

Rosters

NaVi
  • Oleksandr ‘s1mple’ Kostyljev
  • Denis ‘electroNic’ Sharipov
  • Ilya ‘Perfecto’ Zalutskiy
  • Valerij ‘b1t’ Vakhovsjkyj
  • Andrij ‘npl’ Kukharsjkyj
The Mongolz
  • Garidmagnai ‘bLitz’ Byambasuren
  • Sodbayar ‘Techno4K’ Munkhbold
  • Baatarkhuu ‘Bart4k’ Batbold
  • Tuvshintugs ‘ANNIHILATION’ Nyamdorj
  • Chinguun ‘hasteka’ Bayarmaa

Map Picks & Bans

  1. TheMongolz removed Ancient
  2. Natus Vincere removed Anubis
  3. Natus Vincere removed Inferno
  4. TheMongolz removed Vertigo
  5. TheMongolz removed Overpass
  6. Natus Vincere removed Nuke
  7. Mirage was left over

The Match

For NaVi vs The Mongolz, Mirage was the playground once again. NaVi started off their IEM Rio 2023 run winning the pistol rounds against Mongolz. They followed it up by winning three more rounds at a stretch. But it was now time for Mongolz to respond. For the rest of the first half, it was total domination from the Mongolian side. Their aggression and tactics outshined the entire NaVi roster. The first half ended 8-7 in favor of the NaVi side. NaVi were looking at an imminent upset if they were to let this continue. However, they did turn things around in the beginning of the second half. They consecutively picked up the first four rounds in the second half regaining their lead over their opponents. The Mongolz could do very little after as NaVi soon picked up the map. The match ended with NaVi winning on Mirage 16-9. Gotta feel bad for bLitz who put up an impressive show for the Mongolz.

The two victors of the opening matches, NIP & NaVi will be facing each other tonight later on. The winner of that matchup will be moving onto the upper bracket finals from group A.

/by
,

G2 Vs Heroic At IEM Katowice 2023 Grand Final

As we draw the curtains on IEM Katowice 2023, we have finally crowned a new CS:GO Major champion. It was G2 vs Heroic at the Spodek Arena in the grand finals. Who are returning home with another championship under their belt? Find out!

G2 vs Heroic

G2 beat another title contender, Team Liquid to make it to the finals of Katowice 2023. On the other hand, Heroic annihilated NaVi to reach the finals this year. Last year, they missed out losing to FaZe Clan in the semifinals. The stage was now set for G2 vs Heroic!

Rosters

G2 Esports

  • Rasmus “HooXi” Nielsen (IGL)
  • Justin “jks” Savage
  • Ilya “m0NESY” Osipov
  • Nikola “NiKo” Kovač
  • Nemanja “huNter” Kovač

Heroic

  • Casper “cadiaN” Møller (IGL)
  • Martin “stavn” Lund
  • René “TeSeS” Madsen
  • Rasmus “sjuush” Beck
  • Jakob “Jabbi” Nygaard

Map Picks & Bans

  1. G2 removed Overpass
  2. Heroic removed Anubis
  3. G2 picked Nuke
  4. Heroic picked Mirage
  5. G2 picked Inferno
  6. Heroic picked Ancient
  7. Vertigo was left

The Series

Map 1 (Nuke)

Nuke was the first map in the grand finals of G2 vs Heroic. The map started off well for G2. They picked up the first three rounds with relative ease. However, Heroic was quick to remind everyone why they’re in the finals. The first half ended 10-5 in favor of Heroic. G2 started off the second half quite well, again picking up the pistol. HuNter really turned heads in the second half with a 2.01 rating. Thanks to him and support from the rest of the G2 roster, Heroic could barely pick up a map or two on the T-side. G2 picked up the first map 16-12.

Map 2 (Mirage)

The G2 vs Heroic series continued with Heroic’s pick of Mirage. This time, Heroic started off the map well picking up the first three rounds. The first half ended in favor of Heroic yet again, with the score line being 9-6. G2 bounced back at the beginning of the second half. G2’s m0NESY showed up big time as they leveled the score 10-10. G2 turned the game around with some big plays from round 21. Heroic showed some resistance but it was too little, too late. G2 picked up the second map as well against Heroic 16-13.

Map 3 (Inferno)

G2 had to seal the third map to pick up the series. They picked up the first round but Heroic was quick to respond. They won the next 6 rounds straight without sweating much. G2 did a good job of trying to make a comeback as the first half finished 8-7, slightly in favor of G2. The momentum continued as G2 won the first two rounds of the second half as well. But Heroic’s entire roster showed terrific co-ordination and team effort in the second half. Heroic picked up their first map win quite comfortably, 16-11 being the score line.

Map 4 (Ancient)

Ancient started the right way for G2. They started CT-side and won the first three rounds. Heroic started to resist from the next round but G2 fought back again. The first half ended 9-6 in favor of G2. With a 3-round advantage, they were now hoping to win the series and the grand final. G2 kept their eyes on the prize as they were dominant in the second half- only conceding a single round. Picking up their easiest map of the night, G2 beat Heroic and have now been crowned the champions of IEM Katowice 2023.

G2 fans across the globe must surely be ecstatic after their team’s win.

/by
,

IEM Rio Major 2022 Quarterfinals Predictions

We have finally stepped into the Champions Stage of IEM Rio Major 2022. With only 8 teams remaining, the quarterfinals will commence from tomorrow. Let’s check out the top 8 teams and present our predictions of the IEM Rio 2022 Quarterfinals!

IEM Rio 2022 Quarterfinals

Top 8 Teams

Here are the top 8 teams of IEM Rio 2022 Quarterfinals:

  • Cloud9
  • MOUZ
  • Fnatic
  • Outsiders
  • Heroic
  • Team Spirit
  • Natus Vincere
  • FURIA Esports

IEM Rio 2022 Quarterfinals Predictions

As we can already see, there are an abundance of big names among the top teams this season. It’s gonna be tough to pick up the victors in all of the matchups but here we go with our IEM Rio quarterfinals predictions:

Fnatic vs Outsiders

We have Fnatic vs Outsiders as the first series of the quarterfinals. And this should be a good one! Both the teams have had a similar form throughout this tournament so far. However, Outsiders picked up a two-map win over Fnatic last week. Fnatic would definitely want to take revenge for their earlier loss but it’ll be tough. It seems like Outsiders will be picking up another win over Fnatic but it might be a close one.

Cloud9 vs MOUZ

The second match of day 1 of the quarterfinals see Cloud9 facing MOUZ. The two teams had very different starts to the tournament. MOUZ were table toppers during the Challengers Stage picking up consecutive wins against Outsiders, Evil Geniuses and Fnatic. However, they couldn’t replicate the dominance in the Legends Stage losing against BIG and Outsiders. On the other hand, Cloud9 started off sloppy losing against Fnatic and Grayhound in their two opening matches. Over time, they regained their form and now look to dominate MOUZ.

Cloud9 should be the easy favorites to win the series here. We know how good they are on maps like Overpass and Mirage where they have far better winrates than MOUZ. MOUZ always tries to ignore Dust2, so if C9 picks that up then it will be game over then and there. So, we’re siding with Cloud9 as the clear favorite here.

Heroic vs Team Spirit

Heroic vs Team Spirit could go either way. Both the teams have displayed some amazing Counter-Strike in this tournament. Heroic’s wins over Fnatic, Outsiders, and Team Liquid have impressed the crowd quite a bit despite being annihilated by C9. Team Spirit did pick up a well-deserved win against Liquid but losses against FURIA and Outsiders were uncalled for.

This matchup will boil down to the map picks and bans. If Heroic gets both Nuke and Overpass in their favor, they should be picking up this series. This series should be an amazing matchup!

Natus Vincere vs FURIA Esports

FURIA, overall, have had a better performance at IEM Rio thus far. They won all of their Legends Stage matches against ENCE, Team Spirit and BIG. Including those three, FURA have won six consecutive matches. With all of that in mind, Natus Vincere is surely in trouble. They started off the tournament on the wrong foot losing against Cloud9 and Team Liquid. With current form in consideration, we don’t see NaVi making it out alive. FURIA just might get the best of them this time around especially with yuurih in such great form.

So, what do you make of our IEM Rio quarterfinals predictions? May the odds be in your favor!

/by