Natus Vincere defeated G2 in the Grand Final of the PGL Major, in an absolute thriller of a series to win their first-ever Major in CS:GO. The win comes after losing out in the Grand Finals of a Major twice, once at MLG Columbus 2016 and then at the Faceit London Major in 2018. NaVi with their sheer firepower and determination- did not lose a single map in the Major, a feat that has never happened before, not even during the Prime Astralis era.
‘S1mple’ gets the one trophy missing from his cabinet in the most dominant way possible, as he can finally call himself a Major Champion. For his destructive performances throughout, s1mple was also crowned the MVP of the Major, a title that is anything but undeserved for a player of his calibre.
MAP VETO
1. G2 removed Overpass
2. Natus Vincere removed Vertigo
3. G2 picked Ancient
4. Natus Vincere picked Nuke
5. Natus Vincere removed Inferno
6. G2 removed Dust2
7. Mirage was left over
MAP 1 : Natus Vincere 16-11 G2 esports
Surprise pick coming in from G2 Esports, saw them get off to a slow start, following a pistol round debacle where NAVI were able to retake, despite the French Balkan mix finding an empty bombsite. Finding momentum early on, helped Navi muster up a sizable lead, but G2 were quick to get back on their feet, making the half extremely competitive, 8-7 favoring Natus Vincere. huNter- and JaCkz struggled to find form, to NAVI’s advantage.
An early pistol round victory pulled in some hope for G2 Esports, which NAVI responded with a force buy conversion. G2 cut it close, but not close enough and NAVI were able to push it past the finish line with reletive ease. Aleksandr ‘s1mple’ Kostyliev found his apex, dropping 32 kills and a 1.68 rating. G2 were able to pick up four more rounds on their defense before NAVI picked up 8, thus picking up G2’s map pick.
MAP 2 : Natus Vincere 22-19 G2 esports
Going to the home map of NaVi, things looked bleak as ever for G2 having already lost their map pick. Not to mention, NaVi’s 17-0 undefeated streak was also intact, having not lost a game on it since May. But G2 seemed to relish the pressure and the huge task at hand. They started with a pistol win and conversion but NaVi found their form with 3 consecutive rounds.
It was then that ‘JaCkz’ took the reins in his hands, and with his ridiculous lobby aggression, handed G2 round after round on the CT side. He was their highest rated player on the CT side and by a margin with a rating of 1.41 as NaVi succumbed to a 5-10 loss on the T side.
As the sides switched, G2 did not let go of the gas and kept at it even after losing a 3v5 in the force buy from NaVi. After the guns were out, the scoreline read 14-7 and we looked set for a finish on Mirage as NaVi’s streak looked to come to an end. The old guard rose like a phoenix for the CIS side as ‘s1mple’ and ‘electronic’ clawed back round after round to bring the score to 15-11. It looked all over when ‘s1mple’ had his back turned and ‘NiKo’ wrapped onto heaven in a 2v2 post plant, but fate was with the Ukrainian as NiKo fluffed his lines and gave NaVi a lifeline.
It was then the New boys’ ‘B1T’ and ‘Perfecto’ turn to step up and they did, to complete the comeback and take Nuke to Overtime.
NaVi started well on the CT side of overtime, and after converting a second round, they needed 2 more to win the Major. The Kovac brothers came alive in consecutive rounds to take the game to a second overtime.
The story was the same in second OT as even ‘Amanek’s heroics couldn’t prevent NaVi from winning 2 T rounds. Once the sides switched again, it was all over as NaVi read G2 like a book and posted 2 rounds back to back to win the Grand Final, and their First Ever Major.
Your PGL Major Stockholm Champions – Natus Vincere
After 5 long years, Aleksandr ‘s1mple’ Kostyliev finally got the most coveted crown in CS:GO, and what a stage to do it. After 2 years with no Majors due to the Coronavirus, and almost no LANs, then to come back with a changed roster and WIN the Major undefeated – is a Cinderella story in its own right.
NaVi take home $1 million and the PGL Major Stockholm trophy, while ‘NiKo’ is made to wait yet again as G2 end as runners up and win $300,000.
