MIBR and AVANGAR reach 1-1 pool; compLexity and NRG fall 0-2

MIBR and AVANGAR were able to best Complexity and NRG, respectively, ensuring a spot in the 1-1 pool of the New Legends stage.

The second batch of Swiss round two matches kicked off on the B stream, where a battle between the Americas took place. North America's Complexity butted heads with MIBR in hopes to elevate their position to the 1-1 map pool.

The two teams faced off on Mirage, where an initial victory in the form of a post-plant defusal for MIBR was succeeded by a fruitful force-buy from Complexity. The back-and-forth dynamic of the first few rounds persisted throughout the initial half, with MIBR feeling the financial burden of the CT side on frequent occasion. Having exchanged strings of consecutive victories apiece, a brawl ensued in the closing rounds of the first half, with Peter "⁠stanislaw⁠" Jarguz's men coming out on top with an 8-7 T side score.

Gabriel "⁠FalleN⁠" Toledo's squad burst onto the offense with not only a pistol round, but three additional victories to follow, placing the Brazilian side at an 11-8 lead. Complexity were able to break the offense's winning streak after stabilising financially, only to get reset right after. Round 22 marked a pivotal round, where a mixed buy on the defence would effectively either make or break the game for Complexity. Fortunately for MIBR they were able to break the CTs, proceeding to close the map following three consecutive rounds victories at 16-9.

Parallel to the American clash, NRG and AVANGAR duked it out on Overpass, with both sides desperate to avoid the 0-2 pool of the New Legends stage.

The Kazakh squad commenced affairs with a victorious CT-side pistol round, where a 2v2 post-plant situation was converted into a first digit. With finances in hand, a force-buy was seen on part of NRG which yielded short-term results in the form of a single round, but in the long-run AVANGAR continued to outclass their opponents. The CTs consistently fended off the aggressors, ensuring a poor economy for their opponents, with the half ending with an 11-4 lead in favour of the CIS side.

Faced with an intimidating round deficit, NRG took it upon themselves to bridge the disparity. The second pistol was secured by the defence as well as the following round, but rifles in AVANGAR's hands meant a victory for the Kazakh squad.

The setback apparently had little impact on the stoic CTs, as NRG methodically shut down the aggressors in seven of the following eight rounds to equalise the score at 13-13. In a last-ditch effort, AVANGAR dared to face NRG despite a poor economy, yielding a positive result for the Kazakh side. With outstanding individual plays from Dzhami "⁠Jame⁠" Ali and Timur "⁠buster⁠" Tulepov in the concluding rounds of Overpass, AVANGAR were able to secure a 16-13 victory.