AVANGAR defeat Valiance; to face FURIA in DreamHack Open Rio grand final

AVANGAR successfully bested Valiance 2-1, now set to face FURIA in the grand final of DreamHack Open Rio 2019.

The second semi-final kicked off on Train, where Valiance got off to a fruitful start in the form of a T-side pistol round victory. Sanjar "⁠SANJI⁠" Kuliev dispatched a total of three opponents in the following round, allowing his team a post-plant conversion, upsetting the potential for development of early momentum on part of the Ts. Having lost back-to-back rounds, the European mix re-stabilised upon securing rifles, extending their lead to 5-2. Consistent with the lop-sided nature of the map, it was AVANGAR’s time to shine, as seven of the eight remaining rounds went in the way of Bektiyar "⁠fitch⁠" Bahytov and co, concluding the initial half 9-6 in the CIS representatives’ favour.

Following a loss streak, Valiance were able to accrue rounds early on their defence, as momentum was developed off the back of the consecutive pistol victory, contrary to the prior half. This closed the round disparity to just one, but AVANGAR seemingly flipped the tables, able to upset the well-developed CT economy. Off the back of this shift, the Kazakh roster went on to secure map point, and after conceding two rounds to the CTs, the squad stole Valiance’s map pick with a 16-12 scoreline.

Inferno followed, with Valiance kicking off on the CT side of affairs. The defence was able to secure a consecutive pistol victory, and steadily amassed rounds at the expense of AVANGAR. The Kazakh offense consistently struggled to pose a threat to the defence, able to secure just a single round. Valiance rounded out the remaining rounds at 14-1, with Nemanja "⁠huNter-⁠" Kovač adding insult to injury by scoring an ace in round 13 after converting a 1v2 situation into an additional round for his team.

Having transferred to the defence, AVANGAR started addressing the deficit right away. The second pistol went their way, and despite falling come Valiance's rifle round, the Kazakhs pushed ahead. Economic resets and solid site holds across the board meant the squad was able to bridge the round gap to five, but Valiance finally found their second round of the latter half, closing Inferno 16-10.

Concluding the series was Dust2. Having commenced on the CT side, Valiance were able to secure yet another pistol. An upset came in the following round, but despite the setback, the European mix managed a 4-1 lead. From this point onwards, AVANGAR persistently secured rounds on the offence, forcing the CTs to mind their economy through risk-averse decision-making. Due to a fragile economy Valiance were able only to snag two additional rounds over the initial half, going into the latter one with a 4-11 deficit.

Nemanja "⁠nexa⁠" Isaković and co. hit the ground running having swapped to the offense, securing the final pistol round of the series. This was followed up with an additional four victories, bridging the round difference to 9-11. After this successful stint the Terrorists faltered, unable to wriggle their way out of what seemed to be consistent struggle to breach bomb sites. Dipping in and out of economic resets, Valiance eventually found success after AVANGAR secured map point, unfortunately unable to build a comeback off the back of it. The Kazakh squad subsequently secured a grand final placement following a 16-12 victory on map three.