Gambit sends NIP home
The CIS machine of Gambit was too much for NIP to handle
After having lost to NIP in the opening round of play in Group A, it was down to Gambit to prove that they are in fact still a force to be reckoned with in tier-one CS:GO. A battle between the two ensued once again, this time in the Lower Final of Group A. It was clear from start to finish that one team was simply just better than the other. Gambit pulled through against NIP and secured a confident victory against the Scandinavian. Finishing the Bo3-series in just two maps it was another victory for the CIS machine of Gambit.
The first map of the Bo3-series was to be played on the soil of Ancient and was picked by NIP. Whilst it hasn’t been a rarity for NIP to pick Ancient as their own map pick, it is still safe to say that when playing Ancient anything can happen. Things didn’t happen as NIP had hoped for. Whilst it was a close affair in the first half of Ancient it was clear as to who the better was in the second half. Once Gambit got their CT-side rolling it seemed only a matter of time before Ancient would conclude with them as the victors. A stunning performance from AWP’er “sh1ro” cemented a confident victory for the CIS roster, as they could walk away from Ancient satisfied at the scoreline of 16-10.
The second map of the Bo3-series took place on Vertigo and was picked by Gambit. Once again it was a close first half between the two rosters. Going back and forth in the early stages of Vertigo it came to be as close as possible with an 8-7 scoreline going into the final half of the map. NIP, carried by their IGL “hampus” started strong on their T-sided half, however, it wasn’t long until the CIS giants of Gambit shifted into gear. Once “sh1ro” and his teammates finally found their groove it seemed almost impossible for NIP to penetrate the defense and they were able to walk away with a 16-12 victory on Vertigo.
Highlight of the BO3-series
Ninjas in Pyjamas - MOUZ 2-0 | IEM Katowice
16-10 (Ancient) | 
sh1ro – 1.82 Rating / 26-9 K-D / 101.5 ADR
16-12 (Vertigo) | sh1ro - 1.48 Rating / 23-12 K-D / 78.9 ADR
MVP: Dmitry 'sh1ro' Sokolov - 1.64 Rating / 49-21 K-D / 89.8 ADR
