Astralis earn ticket to IEM Katowice group stage, send BIG to Play-In lower bracket

BIG and fnatic will fight for their last chance to qualify for the main event.

Astralis have qualified for the main stage of IEM Katowice 2022 after defeating BIG 2-1 in the upper bracket quarterfinals. The match got off to a hot start with Kristian "⁠k0nfig⁠" Wienecke taking over the server on Ancient to give the Danes the series advantage before Nils "⁠k1to⁠" Gruhne returned the favor on Dust2. A close game on Overpass ensued, with Astralis coming out victorious after a failed German comeback.

The victory means a lot for the Lukas "⁠gla1ve⁠" Rossander-led squad as they look to find better form after a disappointing start to 2022. It also is some sweet revenge for the Danes, who suffered two separate defeats at the hands of the German team in BLAST Premier Spring Groups.

k0nfig played a fantastic game on Ancient

Astralis decided to start off the series on Ancient, and quickly got to work by winning the pistol round and stringing together a short winning streak. BIG responded with a streak of their own, taking the lead at 5-4 thanks to the dynamic duo of Josef "⁠faveN⁠" Baumann and Florian "⁠syrsoN⁠" Rische. Not to be overshadowed by anyone, k0nfig put on a vintage performance, ending the half with a 20-9 K-D and 133 ADR to power the Danes to a 10-5 advantage. After halftime, Philip "⁠Lucky⁠" Ewald showed much better form and enabled Astralis to concede only four rounds before securing their map pick 16-9.

Moving into BIG's home turf of Dust2, the Germans played a more comfortable game, quickly earning a 7-0 scoreline as k1to tried to make up for a poor performance in the first map. Astralis' individuals failed to get going and only managed to claim four rounds in a CT half to forget. Meanwhile, BIG did not slow down, easily extending their lead and closing the half 11-4. From there, it was plain sailing as the Germans converted the pistol and cruised to a 16-5 victory over the Danes.

The series culminated on Overpass. Despite a close start to the half thanks to Tizian "⁠tiziaN⁠" Feldbusch's incredible start, Astralis were able to gain a lot of ground on the T side. gla1ve continued his great form, while Andreas "⁠Xyp9x⁠" Højsleth finally began performing during the 10-5 half. After halftime, BIG threatened a comeback following a seven-round winning streak which was eventually stopped by the Danish defense just ahead of overtime, with them edging out the win 16-13.

IEM Katowice 2022 Play-inBest of 3

Astralis

Matchpage

2

1

15th February 2022

BIG

16

Ancient

9

5

Dust2

16

16

Overpass

13

Astralis	K - D	+/-	ADR	KAST	Rating2.0
Kristian 'k0nfig' Wieneckek0nfig	57 - 46	+11	86.5	69.3%	1.21
Lukas 'gla1ve' Rossandergla1ve	50 - 46	+4	70.5	76.0%	1.11
Andreas 'Xyp9x' HøjslethXyp9x	43 - 51	-8	70.6	65.3%	0.96
Benjamin 'blameF' BremerblameF	39 - 48	-9	70.0	62.7%	0.93
Philip 'Lucky' EwaldLucky	46 - 46	0	54.1	70.7%	0.90

BIG	K - D	+/-	ADR	KAST	Rating2.0
Josef 'faveN' BaumannfaveN	57 - 47	+10	76.4	68.0%	1.14
Nils 'k1to' Gruhnek1to	56 - 50	+6	73.5	64.0%	1.09
Johannes 'tabseN' WodarztabseN	46 - 47	-1	75.4	70.7%	0.99
Florian 'syrsoN' RischesyrsoN	40 - 46	-6	61.3	64.0%	0.96
Tizian 'tiziaN' FeldbuschtiziaN	38 - 45	-7	62.8	66.7%	0.92