MIBR beat NiP to book last playoff spot

MIBR are through to the New Champions Stage at the FACEIT Major after defeating Ninjas in Pyjamas in a thrilling three-map series.

The final match of the series began at a frantic pace, with Ninjas in Pyjamas taking the pistol round with a B execute, only to be caught off-guard in the following anti-eco. MIBR rode that momentum and carved out a 6-1 lead, but the rest of the half was all about the Swedes' great offence. With Christopher "⁠GeT_RiGhT⁠" Alesund constantly opening up the map for his team, the Ninjas took control of proceedings and closed out the half with a narrow 8-7 lead.

Now playing on the Terrorist side, MIBR took control of the A site in the pistol round and followed it up with both anti-ecos to take a 10-8 lead. Their fantastic run continued in the gun rounds, with the Brazilians hitting map point without dropping even one round in the half.

It looked like MIBR had the game under control, but they surprisingly ran out of steam. The Ninjas kept their defense very tight for the rest of the half, winning seven rounds in a row to force overtime, but their efforts were in vain as the Brazilians picked themselves up and secured four rounds in a row to seal a 19-15 success in a weird game with huge streaks from both sides.

Mirage, the next map, followed the same pattern as the first. Ninjas in Pyjamas took the pistol round as Dennis "⁠dennis⁠" Edman and Fredrik "⁠REZ⁠" Sterner overturned a tricky 2v3 situation, but MIBR replied instantly following two Desert Eagle headshots by Marcelo "⁠coldzera⁠" David. This time around, the Brazilians would not be able to take the lead, though, as Ninjas in Pyjamas hit back on eco to frustrate Gabriel "⁠FalleN⁠" Toledo's men.

With the economy under control and the momentum now swinging in their favor, Ninjas in Pyjamas cruised to a 4-1 lead. MIBR then strung seven rounds together with a very tight defence, but Ninjas in Pyjamas came fighting back towards the end of the half and took an 8-7 lead.

Ninjas in Pyjamas further added to their lead after taking control of the bomb dropped by MIBR as they tried to push connector. Once they got money in the bank - after two unsuccessful ecos -, MIBR excelled on the map and brought the deficit to a solitary round. However, Ninjas in Pyjamas were unwilling to let the game snowball out of control and upped the pressure in the mid area, putting together a massive string of rounds to secure the map at 16-10.

The Ninjas got off on the right foot on Train and took the lead following a chaotic pistol round. After losing an eco, MIBR fought back with a successful third-round buy, setting themselves up for a four-round streak and immediately hitting back after Ninjas in Pyjamas got their third round on the board.

MIBR continued to tear up the Ninjas in Pyjamas economy, with the scoreline blooming to a 7-3 advantage. Ninjas in Pyjamas then finally responded, but there was no follow-up as FalleN went huge two rounds in a row, first with a timely flank inside, then with a 1v2 clutch. The Brazilians went on to hit double digits before dennis won an all-decisive 1v1 for his team to keep the deficit to five rounds.

Patrik "⁠f0rest⁠" Lindberg kept his team in the game with a massive ace in the next pistol round. That was the start of a dominant run from the Swedish side, who would equalise the score at 10-10 following a triple kill by Jonas "⁠Lekr0⁠" Olofsson in the first gun round of the half.

The Brazilians were starting to look troubled, but things improved once they switched to a double AWP setup. They bagged three rounds in a row, bringing the scoreline to 13-10, and hit back immediately after losing a round to the Swedes. With their economy in shambles, Ninjas in Pyjamas were helpless to prevent MIBR from reaching match point, and a desperate outer bombsite push on a shoddy buy did not pay dividends as the CTs overturned a 3v4 deficit.

The final standings for the New Legends Stage look as follows: