Aurora complete dominant run to claim Skyesports Masters title

The Russian team continues to impress after adding r3salt, dropping just one map en route to the title.

Aurora have won Skyesports Masters 2024 after completing a flawless run through the tournament bracket, beating OG 3-1 in the grand final (13-6 Anubis, 11-13 Mirage, 13-10 Ancient, 13-3 Overpass) to earn the $105,000 first-place prize.

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OG and Aurora set to clash for Skyesports Masters title

The title victory comes amidst a stellar run of form for Aurora since the addition of Evgeny "⁠r3salt⁠" Frolov, with the team qualifying for BetBoom Dacha Belgrade and ESL Challenger Jönköping in the last two weeks. The 19-year-old's addition has elevated the team to new heights, not just from his own firepower, but in the level the team has showcased overall.

Such was their dominance in this event that four of Aurora's players finished among the top-six highest-rated players, with Denis "⁠deko⁠" Zhukov and Aleksandr "⁠KENSI⁠" Gurkin leading the charge atop the board with 1.32 and 1.29 ratings, respectively. Even with KENSI having a relatively quiet final, r3salt and Viktor "⁠Lack1⁠" Boldyrev were there to step up in his stead, with the team proving far too strong for OG to combat.

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Aurora qualify for BetBoom Dacha Belgrade

Aurora had eased past OG in their opening match of the double-elimination bracket and beaten FORZE and BetBoom to earn a place in the best-of-five grand final, with their undefeated run earning them no advantage in the title-decider.

OG recovered in the lower bracket with a phenomenal run that saw them beat ENCE, Ninjas in Pyjamas, BIG, and BetBoom to earn a rematch against Lack1's side, but despite the European combine winning a map and making the scorelines more competitive this time, Aurora were simply a cut above.

An almost-flawless CT side on Anubis allowed Aurora to steal OG's map pick to start the series, but a weak offense on Mirage came back to bite the Russian team as, despite recovering from a 3-9 deficit to lead 10-9, they let their map slip away as Nikita "⁠HeavyGod⁠" Martynenko almost single-handedly carried his team over the finish line.

Aurora maintained control on Ancient, going 5-1 up on the CT side, but OG showed resilience and recovered to take the lead at the start of the second half, 8-7. That lead was brief, however, as Aurora swung momentum back in their favor after a back-and-forth trading of rounds and closed out the map, 13-10, before completely running away with the game on Overpass courtesy of a 1.90-rated performance from deko and three hero rounds from Lack1 in the second half to close things out.

Skyesports Masters 2024 final standings:

1. Aurora - $105,000
2. OG - $70,000
3. BetBoom - $52,500
4. BIG - $35,000
5-6. FORZE - $26,250
5-6. Ninjas in Pyjamas - $26,250
7-8. Gods Reign - $15,000
7-8. ENCE - $15,000