Almost everyone predicted Group B to be the group of death in this major considering the sheer calibre of the teams in it. ViCi Gaming, Fnatic and Alliance are all perceived to be strong on paper, with Alliance and ViCi showcasing their strengths at LAN events preceding the major. So it wasn’t really a surprise to see Fnatic down in the Loser’s match.
As expected, Fnatic has steadily climbed its way back into a deciding series, with a 2-0 victory over Team Spirit. You can find a brief recap of the games below.
The first series between these two teams was also very close with Alliance barely eeking out a 2-1 victory. So this rematch is expected to be quite intriguing to watch.
Fnatic vs Team Spirit
Game 1: The first game was a very close affair. Both teams emerged relatively unscathed from the laning stage. Team Spirit took the lead in the early-mid game with a series of smart ganks and good vision-control. However, Fnatic still kept themselves in the game with good farming patterns and some great teamfights. DJ, in particular, had an impressive showing with his Shadow Shaman by farming up a Blink-Aether Lens-BKB at a rapid pace. This enabled Fnatic to chain-stun the CIS team’s carry in the late-game phase and secure the victory.
Game 2: Fnatic were far more dominant in the earlier stages of the 2nd game. However, several rookie mistakes gave Spirit a way back into the game. The Russians took full advantage, taking control of the mid-game with overwhelming teamfights. But Fnatic struck back in the late-game where their heroes were simply better and secured the victory.
Fnatic’s game against Alliance has already kicked off. You can catch the game on the Beyond The Summit channel.
