Astralis move on to ECS semi-finals over fnatic

Astralis are the second team to secure a place in the semi-finals after taking down fnatic for the first place in Group B (2-0; Nuke 16-6, Inferno 16-14).

Having played two close affairs in October and leaving the score unsettled with the current rosters at 1-1 in series, Astralis and fnatic played against each other for the third time at ECS, this time for a berth in the semi-finals.

The Danes had been proving their dominance on Nuke again in November ahead of the American event, with their undefeated streak stretching back nine maps (including one tie). In Arlington, however, they started off with a hard-fought victory against Sharks on the same map but bounced back with confidence, unafraid to opt for it against the Swedes.

With Nicolai "⁠device⁠" Reedtz leading the way, Astralis amassed a hefty lead on the offense to start things off, with fnatic only being able to win a couple of stray rounds out of the first 11. A fantastic 1v4 clutch from Jesper "⁠JW⁠" Wecksell that hinged on a fraction-of-a-second defuse in the final duel helped the Swedish team end the half with five in total, but once on the defense, Lukas "⁠gla1ve⁠" Rossander's men defended ramp in the pistol round and it was quite a smooth sailing from there as they won the opening map 16-6.

fnatic looked to respond with a good start on Inferno, racking up a 4-0 lead before the two teams went back and forth, with Astralis managing to keep their opponents' economy low despite a few dominant rounds at the beginning. Once they broke through with a solid forcebuy on the A bombsite, the Danish team pushed Maikil "⁠Golden⁠" Selim & co. into a difficult position in the last four rounds of the half, in which they forcebought unsuccessfully and ended up conceding the rest.

The map looked destined to go the full distance when neither team could establish an edge early, with fnatic's opening three rounds responded to with a trio going Astralis' way, and back-and-forth they went. Finding themselves down 13-14, the Danes stepped up late in the game with three in a row, locking down the series 2-0.