s1mple secures NAVI a playoff spot
A standout performance from the Ukrainian beast made sure his team booked their ticket to the playoffs at IEM Global Challenge.
This was the first time NAVI and Liquid met since their clash in Katowice at the start of the year, which was on LAN, and s1mple’s troops managed to come out on top with a 2-0 victory, sending Liquid down to the group’s lower bracket where they will be fighting for survival on Friday against FURIA, who they have only beaten twice in 12 series.
NAVI came back from a 5-10 lead by Liquid on Mirage with a flawless T-side before securing the map in overtime, thanks to s1mple who went on a rampage and racked up important kills after struggling in the early stages. The first map of the series, which was Liquid’s map pick, ended with s1mple and company taking home the victory in OT with a 19-16 score.
On the second map of the series, it was NAVI who got the best start and went on a 9-1 run, keeping their control and not giving any stupid mistakes away to the NA-side. The CIS squad brought the scoreline to 14-6, winning four of the initial five rounds of the half. Liquid started to fight back on their T-side, but they were completely denied by the Ukrainian beast, who pulled off an insane 1v2 clutch in the end that closed the map 16-10 and wrapped up the series 2-0.
The Ukrainian beast finished off the series on top of the scoreboards with an overall rating of 1.41, 89.9 ADR, and a 54-35 score.
