YEKINDAR bullies NAVI as Liquid move to 2-0 pool in Paris

The Latvian dropped a 2.00-rated performance to earn Liquid their second win of the Paris Major's Legends Stage.

Liquid are the first team to move to the BLAST.tv Paris Major Legends Stage 2-0 pool following a comfortable and never-in-doubt 16-8 victory over Natus Vincere.

The victory was largely thanks to a heroic performance from Mareks "⁠YEKINDAR⁠" Gaļinskis, who was firing on all cylinders for the entirety of the best-of-one affair with clean entries, clinical calling, and crisp shooting.

The Latvian, who is acting as part in-game leader for the tournament, ended proceedings with a monstrous 2.00 rating, fueled by his 29-14 K-D and 124 ADR.

Liquid were quick to make their presence known in the server, with an in-your-face and unrelenting showing from YEKINDAR keeping Natus Vincere under wraps for much of the half. It was this stellar performance from the Latvian that allowed Liquid to lead 14-1 at the break; the 23-year-old ended the attacking phase with a 23-8 K-D and 2.58 rating.

Natus Vincere rallied somewhat once it was their turn to go on the offensive, with Oleksandr "⁠s1mple⁠" Kostyliev picking up the mantle to spearhead a late-map recovery to eight rounds. Alas, Liquid's overbearing lead ultimately proved to be too tall a mountain to climb, with the North Americans closing things out before it ever got close, 16-8.

The win will serve as a major boost of confidence for Liquid, who almost missed out on a spot in the Legends Stage altogether, requiring a 0-2 to 3-2 recovering in the augural phase of play to ensure a top-16 showing. The Latvian-led lineup now need just one best-of-three win to book an appearance in the Accor Arena, with that all-important game set to be on Sunday.

Natus Vincere, by contrast, will lament letting YEKINDAR lay down the law, with the Ukrainian-majority roster looking completely outclassed in the server. Denis "⁠electroNic⁠" Sharipov's men will certainly be looking for redemption in their 1-1 game, which is scheduled for some point on Sunday morning.