Global Esports had to mount a comeback on Icebox after an early deficit. But, they did so in style, not only grabbing the 2nd map but also the series with a 2-0 scoreline (13-5 Haven, 13-11 Icebox) over FS Esports in a Group B encounter.
GE went with the experimentative Breach-Sova combination to wreak havoc on the Attacking side. FS opted for a standard composition, favouring the Sova-Skye lineup on haven and started with a bang, getting in a flawless round in the pistol. Ganesh ‘SkRossi’ Gangadhar dropped a triple with the Marshall on the force-buy for an immediate response. Akshay ‘Kappa’ Sinkar opened up the 8th round with a couple of neat kills before SkRossi took over with a triple on the Blade Storm to make it 7-1. Harshit ‘igod’ Punia shut GE down at the Garage, C Site link with a triple kill to double FS’s tally. Siddhiraj ‘Cactus’ Mane and Rahul ‘B2’ Banerjee combined to defend the C site with aplomb to make it a two-round game at the end of the first half. SkRossi pulled out his reliable Sheriff on the pistol and made it count, getting three kills as GE defended B admirably to win the pistol. They even converted the bonus round, thwarting FS’s attempt to make plays with a co-ordinated push from A and B. Even a quad-kill from Pranav ‘Kohli’ Kohli wasn’t enough as GE Bhavin ‘HellRanger’ Kotwani stuck to the defuse and got it before Kohli could eliminate the remaining players to bring up the map point. A brilliant sequence of utility usage from HellRanger stopped FS in their tracks at C long, with Jayanth ‘skillZ’ Ramesh cleaning up the last two kills to close out the map 13-5.
Onto Icebox and both the teams went with what has become the quintessential composition on Icebox. The action started off, with igod punishing GE’s push to grab a quad-kill on the pistol and get FS off to a good start on the Attacking side. The 3rd round saw GE’s aggression receive a similar fate, as did other rounds, with FS Esports quickly grabbing a 7-0 lead, with Kohli getting a triple from inside the Viper’s Pit at A site on the 7th round. GE pulled their socks up and got down to business soon, with SkRossi’s triple earning them the first round. Thereafter, GE gave a lot more respect to FS with no rash pushes, which started yielding rounds for the Defenders. SkRossi’s quad-kill with the Operator from the back of A site saw GE win another round, with an ace from Abhirup Paul ‘Lightningfast’ Choudhury saw him clutch the 1v3 and make it a two-round game. An aggressive push from Cactus saw him grab a triple and enable the defuse at A site. SkRossi’s quad-kill once again saw GE pocket the full-buy round but FS responded with a good B hold to make it 10-6 in their favour. GE rushed A site with nothing but pistols and managed to plant the spike, playing in and around the Viper’s Pit, with SkRossi getting a double with the Classic on the flank to register a thrifty. GE decided to rush mid on the 20th round but FS had it covered, grabbing a thrifty of their own to win their 11t round of the map. GE quickly made it 11-11, setting the map up for an intense finish. GE found themselves in a brilliant position, with a 5v3 advantage on the B postplant. FS almost converted it in their favour though, with HellRanger getting the crucial Viper lineups right to deny them the defuse and bring up the match point. SkillZ’ flank from mid to B caught FS off-guard, with the Killjoy ending the match with a quad-kill.
Another ominous performance from SkRossi, who ended the series with 55 kills in 2 maps, an ADR of 239.8 and an ACS of 395.
