Vitrus.pro has outlasted Falcons in a tough game filled with a series of overtime that led to the Russian side booking a post in the playoffs. Taking some big names down in their run, VP has truly manifested into one of the threatening teams that are to be reckoned with.
Veto
- Falcons removed Anubis
- Virtus.pro removed Nuke
- Falcons picked Mirage
- Virtus.pro picked Ancient
- Falcons removed Dust2
- Virtus.pro removed Train
- Inferno was left over
Map 1: Mirage; Pick: Falcons; Winner: Falcons
A stellar 2v3 conversion opened up the series for the Falcons, which led them to go 5-0 up before VP could get their first round on the board. Despite being in better form, VP managed no more than 3 rounds on the defense, giving Falcons the room for error going into the second half. Winning a few rounds early on in the defense gave the Falcons the commendable lead but then started the avalanche of VP rounds. VP managed to push Falcons to the final round of regulation before a savvy degster 3K in B Apartments closed the game for Falcons. The victory was largely led by Falcons IGL kyxsan and AWPer degster while NiKo and Magisk became more of a supporting cast which gave VP the room to threaten them with overtime.
Map 2: Ancient; Pick: VP; Winner: VP
After the first map got too close for comfort, Falcons brought their A-game to Ancient. Just like Mirage, Falcons were already 5-0 up on the defense before VP won their first round but a poorly orchestrated T side sent the Russian side 9-3 behind before switching sides. VP managed to make a comeback despite Falcons threatening to close it out on multiple occasions. A shaky T side prompted VP to push the game to overtime. A tough exchange of rounds between the two teams pushed it to overtime after overtime and two OTs later, VP managed to edge out their map pick with a 19:16 scoreline. 31 frags from FL4MUS closed the door for Falcons bagging series as the match proceeded to Inferno.
Map 3: Inferno; Pick: Decider; Winner: Falcons
Falcons started off strong and went 7-5 up by the end of the first half. While the scoreline suggested the match was closer than it was. Losing a few rounds in between cost Falcons the cushion of a lead going into the defense. Starting the pistol round with a solid hold, Falcons went on to go 12-5 before VP started to mount a comeback for the third time in the series. Little by little, one round at a time, Falcons let VP pull off another comeback pushing the game to overtime as the snowball effect was on display for the world to see. Three overtimes later, Falcons suffered another heartbreaking loss with a 22:20 scoreline.
An embarrassing loss for Falcons will see them head out of Blast Open Lisbon. Being on the verge of winning the series on several occasions, NiKo and co. let several opportunities slip. Given how Falcons have choked in this game, it seems very difficult for this roster to produce any convincing results let alone help NiKo in his quest for the Major.