BIG join fnatic in Grand Final

DreamHack November 2021 is slowly but surely nearing its end as only four teams are left competing for a spot in the Grand Final. The first Semi-Final of the event saw fnatic defeat MAD Lions and earn their spot in the Grand Final. The second and last Semi-Final was set to be a brawl between BIG and forZe. Both teams showed up and it was a close affair. Going all three maps it was as intense as possible. Ultimately, however, it became clear that BIG had a slight edge over their opponents in forZe. The CIS roster had to see themselves bested when BIG closed out the Bo3-series on Nuke. The 2-1 victory means that BIG will be facing fnatic in the Grand Final of DreamHack November 2021.

The first map was the choice of forZe and saw the Bo3-series start on Inferno. The map of Inferno is notorious for being the home ground of close and intense brawls. Once again this was the case when BIG locked horns with forZe. Despite very little separating the two teams in terms of the scoreline, it seemed as if BIG had the upper hand and a chance of running away with-it multiple times throughout the match. This was never the case, however, as forZe managed to remain calm, claw themselves back, and force overtime. Having strung together 3 successful rounds prior to the overtime it was a forZe roster with momentum that went into OT. Whilst BIG managed to avoid the complete sweep in OT, they would have to see themselves bested by their CIS opponents at the scoreline of 19-16.

The second map of the series was to be played on Dust 2 and was, of course, picked by BIG. Many teams are hesitant to pick maps such as Dust 2 or Mirage as their own map pick because Dust 2 can be a great map for any team if they are feeling themselves. This, however, doesn’t seem to apply to BIG as they have been consistent on Dust 2, largely thanks to “syrsoN” being a beast on the map. Once again BIG proved that Dust 2 is their home ground and seemed way more confident than they did on Inferno, securing a 10-5 lead going into the second half of Dust 2. Things were slightly more competitive in the second half of Dust 2, but ultimately it was too late for forZe and BIG claimed the victory at the scoreline of 16-10.

The third and final map of the series was set to be played on Nuke, a map that both teams are familiar with. After the victory on Dust 2, it was a confident BIG roster that came flying out of the gate and posted an impressive T-sided half. Leaving their opponents always guessing about their whereabouts, it proved difficult for forZe to contain the BIG roster, however, they managed to regain control somewhat going into the second half, at the scoreline of 8-7. Whilst the first half was somewhat close, the second half of Nuke was all BIG. Only allowing forZe a single round, the German-based roster of BIG took home Nuke at the scoreline of 16-8 and earned their spot in the Grand Final.

Highlight of the BO3-series

BIG – forZe (2-1) | DreamHack November 2021 (Semi-Finals)

16-19 (Inferno) |

KENSI – 1.39 Rating / 32-22 K-D / 93.7 ADR

16-10 (Dust 2) |

syrsoN – 1.49 Rating / 25-15 K-D / 97.6 ADR

16-8 (Nuke) |

tabseN – 1.44 Rating / 22-14 K-D / 97.0 ADR

MVP:  Florian "syrsoN" Rische | 1.23 Rating / 67-51 K-D / 83.2 ADR