fnatic defeat NRG; Vitality squeeze past ENCE to secure 2-0 records in Shanghai

fnatic and Vitality secured 2-0 records in Shanghai, following 2-0 and 2-1 map victories over NRG and ENCE, respectively.

The first match of the final round two series saw NRG take on fnatic, kicking off on Cache. The North American representatives initiated on the defence, where footing was established after a lost pistol was followed up with a force buy upset. Having accrued a five-round lead, the energetic quintet conceded the momentum to fnatic, as economic struggles persisted throughout the remainder of the half, allowing but two additional rounds to the Swedes' seven at 8-7.

Upon switching over to the offence, NRG hit the ground running, snatching five consecutive rounds, once more placing themselves in the driver's seat on Cache. The fruitful string of rounds for the CTs was succeeded by a flipping of the table, a catalyst for which was Jesper "⁠JW⁠" Wecksell, who stepped up massively in the latter portion of the second half. A spectacular 4k from the veteran AWPer in round 23 reset the CTs, creating space for his team to mount a comeback. The opportunity was not squandered, allowing fnatic a 16-13 victory on map one.

The Swedes kept their foot on the accelerator going into Nuke. Commencing on the CT side of the map, fnatic were able to secure round victories in spite of rifles present for their opponents, leaping to a 5-0 start. A brawl succeded the one-sided start, where the teams went blow for blow, exchanging five rounds apiece, in turn producing a solid half for fnatic at 10-5.

A consecutive pistol round victory on the offense propelled fnatic even further, as once more the round leaders found themselves copping back-to-back rounds. This persisted to a 14-5 scoreline, placing Damian "⁠daps⁠" Steele and company in a predicament and a half. Against the overwhelming odds and their opponents' momentum, NRG set out to mount a comeback, slowly grinding out rounds and weaving economic resets into fnatic's game. The Swedes managed to secure map point following nine consecutive round losses, however NRG tied it up, pushing Nuke into overtime.

What fnatic were unable to achieve in the second half of Nuke was certainly made up for in overtime, as a 3-0 T side was secured, shortly followed by a single round victory on the CT, concluding the map and series at 19-15.

The final series of the day between Vitality and ENCE witnessed a fiery back-and-forth between the French and Finnish sides. The first map on the table was Mirage, where ENCE got off to a solid start on the T side, securing the first pistol. Nathan "⁠NBK-⁠" Schmitt and his squad managed to secure their first rifle round, later going on to land a 5-1 lead. The Finnish quintet were determined to produce a solid T half, however, allowing but a single additional round to slip at 9-6.

Vitality commenced comeback efforts, successfully equalising the score at 9-9 following a fruitful T pistol. As soon as rifles were seen on ENCE's CT side, things turned sour for the French roster. Aleksi "⁠allu⁠" Jalli and his men assumed an impenetrable defence, one that was successfully breached only on a single occasion over the entire remainder of the second half, producing a 16-10 victory for ENCE on their map pick.

Dust2 followed, where ENCE kicked off to a solid start, copping four consecutive rounds, pistol included. What succeeded this start from the Finns was an utterly one-sided affair, favouring Vitality, who dominated all remaining rounds of the initial half. The entire squad stepped up in the process, producing an incredibly convincing 11-4 CT half.

The Frenchmen kept the second map short and sweet, as the second pistol round went their way, as well as the four remaining rounds required to meet the victory threshold. A total of sixteen consecutive rounds yielded Vitality a 16-4 victory on Dust 2.

Both teams a map up, Inferno was bound to be a neck-in-neck affair, and the dynamic of on-goings definitely reflected this. Vitality started off on the defence, able to secure two of the initial rounds. Come rifles on ENCE, the Finns started to contest for rounds of their own, equalising the scoreline at 2-2. This back and forth dynamic persisted throughout the initial half, where Aleksi "⁠Aleksib⁠" Virolainen and his squad had the last word after resetting the Frenchmen at an 8-7 lead.

Contrary to prior developments, the latter half of Inferno witnessed a lop-sided game. Having switched over to the T side, Vitality picked up the pace, and after securing a consecutive pistol round were able to run away with a further six rounds, placing the team just two away from series victory. ENCE retaliated with a string of four rounds, and despite losing to a force buy, managed to upset the French economy. While a valiant effort, it proved insufficient in stopping Vitality from closing the series, as a 16-13 score was amassed by the Frenchmen, closing day two in Shanghai.