Astralis Secures PGL Bucharest Semi-Finals

Astralis has locked in their spot in the PGL Bucharest Semi-Finals after beating JW’s EYEBALLERS 2-1. The second reverse sweep of the day saw Astralis struggle to get going in the first map, followed by back-to-back dominant performances that will now put them in the semi-finals contest against 3DMAX.

VETO

• EYEBALLERS removed Overpass
• Astralis removed Anubis
• EYEBALLERS picked Mirage
• Astralis picked Ancient
• Astralis removed Dust2
• EYEBALLERS removed Nuke
• Inferno was left over

Map 1: Mirage; Pick: EYEBALLERS; Winner: EYEBALLERS

Astralis’s poor start to the game saw EYEBALLERS dominate for the better part of the first half, a half they managed to make competitive by securing 5 rounds before switching sides. EYEBALLERS took control of the game as they moved on the defense, and while Astralis did threaten to push the game to OT, EYEBALLERS managed to stay on top to push the game over the line.

Map 2: Ancient; Pick: Astralis; Winner: Astralis

Starting on the offense of Ancient, Astralis’ attack delivered poor results. Following the poor half, Astralis’ defense turned the game around, having won 7 rounds in a row, which helped push the game to overtime. EYEBALLERS won 1 round in each half of OT saw Astralis cruise through to the final map of the series.

Map 3: Inferno; Pick: Decider; Winner: Astralis

Following a tough map, Astralis dominated on the defense to start Inferno, as EYEBALLERS were not allowed to have anything more than 2 rounds. Without giving away any room for a comeback, Astralis managed to win back-to-back rounds in the second half to close out the map with a dominant performance to finish the game with a 13-2 scoreline. The new addition, Ryu, stood out as the best player with 20 kills to take Astralis to the semi-finals of PGL Bucharest.

Astralis will be facing the French side 3DMAX, who, on their day, can beat even the top sides. Unless the Danes are prepared to handle the unpredictable nature of 3DMAX, we might have a big upset in the semi-finals.