Ninjas in Pyjamas are in the playoffs of PGL Astana, having taken down a vulnerable G2 side that was far from their best shape. This NiP roster is slowly building momentum, and so far, they have only lost to Aurora and Spirit, two of the best teams in this tournament.
VETO
- G2 removed Train
- Ninjas in Pyjamas removed Mirage
- G2 picked Dust2
- Ninjas in Pyjamas picked Nuke
- Ninjas in Pyjamas removed Inferno
- G2 removed Anubis
- Ancient was left over
Map 1: Dust 2; Pick: G2; Winner: NiP
G2 on the T side failed to put up a convincing performance, leading to NiP putting a stop to any and all plans. Having won 10 rounds in the first half alone, NiP walked into the second half oozing with confidence, but G2 started making a comeback at that point, leading to NiP losing a few rounds early on. G2 reached 8 rounds on the offence, almost closing in on the scoreline before NiP did not let it slip any further and closed the map.
Map 2: Nuke; Pick: NiP; Winner: NiP
Starting on the T side, NiP were closely matched by G2 for the better part of the first half, but NiP managed to edge out a two-round lead. With two more rounds to their name, NiP started their defense, though closely matched with G2, they were the better team as malbs and HeavyGod failed to make up for the loss of firepower due to the absence of Hunter. Both teams’ trading rounds led to NiP closing out the map with a 13-10 scoreline as the G2 offence failed to produce a comeback. Arrozdoce and R1nkle were the two pillars for NiP in securing playoffs, having 1.32 and 1.32 IR respectively.
The absence of Hunter came at a heavy cost for G2, having failed to make it to the playoffs, their confidence will be at an all-time low since losing m0NESY and NiKo. TaZ is nowhere near the level required to play in Tier 1, and the lack of one player has taken the roster to a new low. With the whole line-up set to return for Dallas, time will tell how they will fare at the next IEM.