SAW play "beautiful" Counter-Strike to upset G2

The Portuguese side was a cut above G2 and is now just one win away from LANXESS Arena.

SAW are on the warpath in Cologne and remain undefeated after scoring a statement victory over G2 in their group stage opener, outclassing Janusz "⁠Snax⁠" Pogorzelski's side on Nuke (13-5) and recovering from a deficit on Inferno (13-10) to advance to the upper bracket semi-final of Group A.

The Portuguese team surprised in the Play-in by advancing undefeated with wins over The MongolZ and BIG, but make no mistake here: this was as legitimate of an underdog victory as you can get, with Mohan "⁠launders⁠" Govindasamy going so far as to call it "one of the best underdog performances ever" and "one of the most beautiful games of Counter-Strike" he's seen from an underdog.

The defeat casts G2 down to a cutthroat lower bracket, where they will first take on the loser of Spirit vs. The MongolZ and then have two more best-of-threes to win in order to reach the LANXESS to defend their crown.

Date	Matches
IEM Cologne 2024
11/08/2024	SAW 15:45 The MongolZ	Match
11/08/2024	G2 18:55 Spirit	Match

In a post-game broadcast interview, Eefje "⁠sjokz⁠" Depoortere discussed the win with Rafael "⁠arrozdoce⁠" Wing, with the rifler stating what was clear as day for anyone who caught the game live: SAW were well-prepared for G2.

"We expected to win Nuke because we have a strong Nuke and have been practicing a lot, and we expected them to pick Inferno too. It was a bit shaky on our side, but we worked a lot to prepare their pick and it went great, 2-0, and that's awesome.

"People think we are a bad team," he added about SAW's run thus far. "We are working our asses off and we are showing it, and let's see what else."

SAW's win was emphatic, starting with a masterclass T side on Nuke wherein G2 were given no opportunity to get into the game. Rounds were over moments after they began as the Portuguese team found entry after entry to resign G2 to saves, and three multi-kill rounds from Michel "⁠ewjerkz⁠" Pinto after the side swap ensured the map ended as a statement win, 13-5.

Clip: ewjerkz makes the FAMAS look good (3K)

G2 turned the tables on Inferno, an early string of rounds from SAW fading off in the distance after Nemanja "⁠huNter-⁠" Kovač and the rest of his team repeatedly annihilated SAW in opening duels to lead 7-3. SAW gave themselves a lifeline with two rounds at the end of the half, and that buffer proved crucial after G2 rapidly hit double digits after the side swap, 10-5.

With Nikola "⁠NiKo⁠" Kovač warming up and momentum in G2's hands, the map could well have been over at this point. However, SAW clamped down and showed masterful mentality and teamplay, completely outclassing and outmaneuvering G2 to go on an eight-round run and steal away the victory.