Having gotten off to the worst possible start, Complexity has managed to avoid an embarrassing early exit at the cost of Cloud9. CoL finds themselves in need of one more win to book their spot in the next stage of the Shanghai Major.
VETO
- Complexity removed Mirage
- Cloud9 removed Nuke
- Complexity picked Vertigo
- Cloud9 picked Ancient
- Cloud9 removed Anubis
- Complexity removed Dust2
- Inferno was left over
Map 1: Vertigo; Pick: CoL; Winner: CoL; Score: 16:13
A hot start for Cloud9 in the first half of Vertigo put them on the verge of running away with it. CoL’s game plan seemed to be lacking as C9’s defense was too solid for CoL to break through. The first half closed with a one-sided 10-2 scoreline. CoL was able to get off to a better start in the second half which became the foundation of the comeback they pulled off. A rock-solid CT side from CoL stopped C9 from taking their own pick as replicating the scoreline from the first half took us to OT. Cloud9 stood no chance as CoL ran over them in OT, taking 4 rounds where C9 only managed one.
Map 2: Anceint; Pick: C9; Winner: CoL; Score: 13:8
Pistol round win kicked off Ancient for CoL as they went 3-0 up before C9 got their first round. EliGE’s rock-solid performance was instrumental as CoL won 8 rounds and C9 managed 4 in the same half. Losing the pistol round in the second half closed the door for a comeback and both teams traded rounds til CoL closed the game with a 13-8 scoreline. With 1.38IR and 20 kills to his name, EliGE’s consistency across both halves sealed the deal for C9.
C9 now finds themselves out of the major, a rather unexpected but disappointing outcome. CoL was arguably the best NA side besides Liquid, but find themselves in need of another win to make it to the next stage.
