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Astralis have bounced back with a win over MOUZ in their second outing of the ESL Pro League. This comes after the Danish esports team faced a shocking defeat at the hands of Complexity in Group C’s opening match.
Astralis were able to earn their first three points in the tournament after facing and defeating MOUZ, who also have three points. The match between the teams ended in a 2-0 sweep.
Astralis showcased a much more impressive performance in their second Counter-strike: Global Offensive match, with several team players standing out in the series. Kristian “k0nfig” Wienecke, along with the rest of the Astralis players, notably stepped up in the fragging department and overall made the team’s tactical game plan take a more defined shape.
Astralis’ Asger “Farlig” Jensen was particularly impressive during the match and helped his team end Inferno, the first map with a 16-7 and Nuke with 16-14, earning them their first sweep in the tournament.
Astralis achieved their only win against Complexity previously, on MOUZ’s map pick, Inferno. The Danish lineup had a slow start on their CT side and reached a 0-4 deficit when MOUZ’s Ádám “torzsi” Torzsás started firing on all cylinders. Astralis eventually recovered after Lukas “gla1ve” Rossander executed a clutch and k0nfig, Benjamin “blameF” Bremer, and Farlig posted highlight rounds.
The Danes moved to the lead in the second period, 9-6. They went on to win their T-pistol and upped the lead to 12-6.
MOUZ were able to win a seventh round, but overall did not put up much resistance to the crushing defeat. Farlig carried on with his amazing performance on the map and ended Inferno, giving his team a 16-7 win.
Astralis’ pick, Nuke, was the second map of the series and saw MOUZ get into the lead with a favored CT side. The European team reached a 6-0 score quickly after converting a pistol win. They were, however, unable to finish rounds with more than two alive, which ultimately stopped the team from building an economy.
Astralis, on their end, were able to break the opposition after winning a few rounds and reducing the gap to 4-6. In response, MOUZ changed their approach on the map and employed more proactive and dynamic moves in their defense. The team’s decision helped them assume control again and reach an 11-4 lead at the end of the first half.
The Danish squad were able to move up to 7-11 after a strong conversion and a pistol win. Astralis gained a strong economic foundation and went on to take control of the game.
Their opponents did not take the onslaught sitting down and won a few rounds of their own, using half buys as well as force buys. Astralis ended the map with a narrow 16-14 victory.
The team’s AWPer, Farlig, was outstanding in both maps and scored a 51-24 K/D and a 1.46 rating at the end of the series. He also executed a triple kill in the last round of the second map, Nuke, which served to close the match in Astralis’ favor.
Since joining Astralis in February this year, the AWPer has faced some criticism concerning his more dull performances. The Danish team is also reportedly in the process of bringing former player Nicolai “dev1ce” Reedtz back to the lineup from his inactive role in Ninjas in Pyjamas. Farlig was able to show the team and his army of critics just what he could achieve when he made his playing style more combative.
