G2 secure Major berth with 2-0 victory over FaZe

NiKo was a dynamo for G2 in the qualifying match against FaZe.

G2 are the first team to punch their ticket to the PGL Major in Copenhagen. Rasmus "⁠HooXi⁠" Nielsen and company did so by clearing the RMR's Swiss Stage with a 3-0 scoreline, defeating Into the Breach and Eternal Fire in best-of-ones before taking out FaZe in the best-of-three qualifying match.

The highlight of the day for G2 is without a doubt Nikola "⁠NiKo⁠" Kovač's performance as he came strong out of the gate on Anubis and made crucial plays on Ancient to secure the series for his team.

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What makes this showing even more important is that it pushes some of NiKo's cold performances further from the memory hole, with the last cold coming in the IEM Katowice quarter-finals against FaZe, which he ended with a 0.81 rating.

His 1.67 today marks a great improvement and allowed G2 to take revenge from the IEM Katowice quarter-finals, something HooXi mentioned as a motivator going into the match.

On Anubis, the series was close early on, with streaks of three rounds going both ways up to a 6-6 half. But then G2's T side marked the difference, as a strong start put momentum on their side and an out-of-character performance by the usually quiet HooXi propelled his team to a 1-0 lead.

Ancient, a map FaZe recently beat G2 on, 13-6, in Katowice, was where NiKo did his best work. Clutches, an ace, a 10-second defuse in a 1vs1 situation, and crucial kills throughout tipped the scales in favor of G2, especially in important rounds that carried the weight of the match. And so, after trailing 7-5 at the half, a 1vs2 ace clutch by NiKo in the second pistol round put G2 on the victory path.

Ten rounds later, with Ilya "⁠m0NESY⁠" Osipov also displaying his best, G2 closed the map out 13-9 against a FaZe that seemed low on energy to secure their presence in Copenhagen.

"Thanks to NiKo, first of all, those were some important 1on1s," HooXi joked after the match before also praising the rest of the team. "Everyone pulled through in their moments and momentum is important for any team."

FaZe are far from done despite the loss, as they are in the 2-1 pool and have at least two more chances to make it straight from the RMR's Swiss Stage. Finn "⁠karrigan⁠" Andersen will want to close it out quickly, as they were in this same situation at the BLAST.tv Paris Major's RMR before having to go through the grueling Last Chance Qualifier to ensure their passage to the event in France. Their rivals will be known after the final round of matches decide what the pools will look like.