NRG dispatch MIBR, through to Sydney semi-finals; fnatic eliminate Grayhound

NRG successfully dismantled MIBR 2-0 to secure a semi-final spot in Sydney, while fnatic ensured playoff participation following a 2-1 victory against Grayhound.

The concluding series of the IEM Sydney group stage saw NRG and MIBR square it off for a placement in the semi-final of Sydney, kicking off on Nuke. Damian "⁠daps⁠" Steele and company commenced on the offense, leaping to an immediate four-round lead. MIBR were able to temporarily restabilise financially following the string of losses, but in the long-term the Brazilians struggled to put up much of a fight against the offense, conceding the initial half 4-11.

Consistent with the dynamic of the prior half, MIBR experienced persisting struggles, this time on the T side of Nuke. After conceding the pistol round and the next two, the Brazilians were unable to push the offensive back, allowing NRG a confident 16-4 conclusion to Nuke.

Overpass followed, where NRG were able to carry over momentum into the early rounds of the map. Two successful rounds followed the first pistol, shortly after which MIBR started to show a presence on the T side. The Brazilians equalised the scoreline at 4-4 off the back of a tremendous quad kill from Fernando "⁠fer⁠" Alvarenga. The remainder of the initial half proceeded to skew towards MIBR, allowing the squad an 8-7 lead.

The second pistol round went in the way of MIBR, who were now on the defensive side. Despite a head start, the squad was unable to capitalise in ensuing rounds, allowing NRG to snatch the momentum in their favour. This subsequently proved to be their undoing, as daps and his men very capably dismantled the Brazilian wall, and having conceded as few as three rounds in the latter half, concluded the series with a 16-11 scoreline.

The group B lower bracket final saw fnatic absolutely dominate the remaining local representatives, Grayhound, on Overpass, where Ollie "⁠DickStacy⁠" Tierney and his troops were simply unable to pose a threat. The entire initial half saw the fnatic defense consistently fend off the aggressors, and with only four bomb plants to show, all of which were defused, the Swedes went on to close with a 15-0 scoreline.

In a last-ditch effort to soften the blow, Grayhound were able to secure the second pistol round, largely thanks to a triple kill from Christopher "⁠dexter⁠" Nong. This created space for a further round to be accrued, but the Swedes kept affairs under control, seeing to Overpass' closure at 16-2.

Mirage saw fnatic continue their domination early on, as the first pistol of the map was secured by the Swedes. Shortly afterwards, Grayhound finally found their footing following their frustrating previous performance, and demonstrated unprecedented domination, with the home team closing out their defence with a 10-5 lead.

Two additional rounds were accrued by Grayhound early on the T side, but after that fnatic turned the tides in their favour, consistently fending off the offence for a 12-12 equaliser. Grayhound secured map point off the back of a three-round string, but this disparity was shortly bridged by fnatic, forcing the second map into overtime.

Thanks to a strong 2-1 T-side start in overtime, Grayhound went on to close out the second map, as a flawless defense yielded the Australians a 19-16 victory.

The final map of the series, Inferno, kicked off with a dominant string of rounds from fnatic, who extended their T-side pistol round victory to a 7-0 surplus. Grayhound found limited success on the defence, as constant resets led to financial shortage, concluding the initial half 10-5 in fnatic's favour.

The local representatives commenced their re-entry into the map with a string of rounds, reminiscent of fnatic's from the initial half. Grayhound equalised at ten rounds apiece, but unfortunately for the home team, they were unable to keep up the performance, allowing their opponents some breathing room. The opportunity to close out was not squandered by the veteran roster, as after two rounds were conceded, fnatic closed the map at 16-12 and the series.