Cover Image Courtesy: Intel Extreme Masters
The second day of the New Legends Stage of IEM Katowice 2019 surely lived up to the hype created on the first day which was loaded with upsets one followed by the other. The day witnessed a total of 8 match-ups taking place which once again observed some unexpected outcomes.
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AVANGAR managed to take down FaZe in their Bo1 match-up on Mirage by a score of ‘16-13’. This was a great showing from the Kazakh team who played really well as T-side on Mirage helping them on their way towards a solid victory.
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NiP after yesterday's power packed performance was really impressive today as well, taking down HellRaisers quite comfortably on Overpass. The game was pretty much over in the first half itself after NiP took 13 rounds playing CT-sided. NiP have slowly but surely found their footing.
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ENCE eliminated BIG from the Majors, winning the series ‘2-1’ in a BO3 match-up. After losing their first match on Dust 2 without putting up much of a fight ENCE made their comeback on Train and followed it up with another victory on Overpass.
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NRG who were in such terrific form right through the Challengers Stage gave it their best against Complexity but couldn’t find a victory as Complexity won on both the maps Nuke and Cache. Both the teams gave it there all but NRG felt a little short today reaching an end of their journey.
A Fight To Remember
The way the match started on Mirage between Renegades and Astralis, no one would have guessed that it would be such an intense showdown. Astralis were in total command after dominating the first half against Renegades playing CT-sided on their opposition's strongest map.
But boy were they wrong to have gone ahead with that thought of victory in their mind because Renegades rocked them hard in the second half, piling ten consecutive rounds to reach map point ahead of Astralis.
The streak came to an end as Astralis finally took a round to take the map into overtime. It was still a tough fight but Renegades played in a calm and collective manner, reading Astralis like an open book Renegades took the final round to ensure victory on Mirage by a score of ‘19-17’.
Nuke started off really well for Renegades who managed to take a lead by halftime but the indomitable CT-side of Astralis on Nuke stayed true to its reputation as Astralis won 10 consecutive rounds to take the game onto Inferno.
Having had enough to analyze and running short on patience Astralis played like beasts on Inferno only giving away two rounds to the Aussies before securing a win for themselves and qualifying on to the Champions Stage.
Both Jks and Jkaem were in top form today leading the Aussie pack from the front. Liazz also joined the frag party shinning bright on Nuke as both the senior members Gratisfaction and AZR held the team as the two pillars of support to sail them through this amazing Bo3 series.
Renegades should be nothing but all smiles, they showed that they were a force to reckon with on Mirage while holding their own on Nuke. Though they might have run out of steam and ideas by the third map, they won the heart of all the fans while definitely creating a lot more.
Tomorrow’s schedule is as follows:
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Renegades vs Vitality | 17:30 IST
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Na’Vi vs AVANGAR | 21:00 IST
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MIBR vs NiP | 00:30 IST
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ENCE vs G2 | 17:30 IST
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FaZe vs Complexity | 21:00 IST
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Cloud9 vs HellRaisers | 00:30 IST