Virtus.pro advance to IEM Shanghai playoffs over HellRaisers

Virtus.pro are through to the playoffs at IEM Shanghai 2018 after defeating HellRaisers on two maps (16-11 on Mirage, 16-9 on Train).

The series began on HellRaisers' map pick, Mirage. Filip "⁠NEO⁠" Kubski opened up the action with a clean double-kill on the CT side, but their opponents managed to turn the pistol around on the back of a quad-kill from Vladyslav "⁠bondik⁠" Nechyporchuk. Still, with a 1v2 clutch from Jarosław "⁠pashaBiceps⁠" Jarząbkowski with a Scout in the next round, the Poles took control of proceedings as they followed that up with the subsequent anti-ecos.

Although HellRaisers picked up the first gun round, Virtus.pro went on a great run, winning six rounds in a row to go up 9-2. Issa "⁠ISSAA⁠" Murad and co. then won two of the last four rounds of the half to reduce the deficit to 4-11 by half-time.

Virtus.pro started off the second half on the right foot, winning a near-flawless pistol and the following anti-ecos to reach their 14th round. Kyrylo "⁠ANGE1⁠" Karasiow's men did not throw in the towel, stringing five rounds together to find a lifeline on their map pick. But the Polish team then hit map-point, and closed out Mirage three rounds later, 16-11, with a clean A execution.

Train, Virtus.pro's map pick, kicked off with the Poles securing another pistol round, this time around as Terrorists. After picking up the anti-ecos, Virtus.pro convincingly won the first gun round, losing a single man in the process.

With double-kills from ISSAA and bondik in a pistol-buy, however, HellRaisers got their first round on the board, which they followed up with another. Nevertheless, Virtus.pro were looking far too hot to handle, countinuously shutting down the defence to go up 9-2.

That was when HellRaisers came back to life, tightening up their defence to pick up a three-round winning streak and bring the gap to 5-9. Still, with a triple-kill from Piotr "⁠morelz⁠" Taterka, Virtus.pro got to half-time with a 10-5 lead.

Now playing as Terrorists, HellRaisers won a much-needed pistol round, their first of the series, reducing the deficit to 8-10 after prevailing in the anti-ecos. From that moment, however, Virtus.pro kept denying their opponents' strategies, losing a single round to finish things off at 16-9.