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G2 Esports secured their place in the BLAST Premier World Final with a hard-fought 2-1 win over Team Vitality.
They claimed victories on Dust2 (13-10) and Mirage (13-8) but dropped Inferno (7-13) in a surprising setback.
.@G2CSGO ARE HEADING TO THE WORLD FINAL GRAND FINAL! ✅ #BLASTPremier pic.twitter.com/Hk17jhDFM9
— BLAST Premier 💥 (@BLASTPremier) November 2, 2024
Vitality, fielding a stand-in on their Counter-Strike roster, managed to put up more resistance than anticipated, even taking G2’s typically strong map, Inferno, and pushing G2 on Dust2 and Mirage.
G2’s performance was at times marked by some sloppy plays, including uncharacteristic macro errors and missed opportunities that allowed Vitality to stay competitive.
Janko “YNk” Paunović noted instances on the broadcast where G2’s decisions gave away critical advantages on Dust2.
Yet, G2’s individual skill ultimately overpowered Vitality, with star players Nikola “NiKo” Kovač and Ilya “m0NESY” Osipov capitalising on Vitality’s struggles.
Vitality’s top player, Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut, was quiet overall, while Shahar “flameZ” Shushan and Dan “apEX” Madesclaire also struggled.
Audric “JACKZ” Jug led Vitality in kills and played a major role in their lone map win, highlighting the team’s uneven form.
G2 now face the opportunity to redeem themselves from their IEM Rio stumble in the grand final against Team Spirit, who defeated Astralis 2-1 in the other semi-final.
Spirit showed dominance on Dust2 (13-5) and Ancient (13-5) but struggled on Vertigo, where Astralis overwhelmed them 13-3.
Following a recent slump, Spirit’s victory underscored a resurgence in form, as young player Danil “donk” Kryshkovets reflected that the team has improved and is ready for the challenge.
.@TEAM__SPIRIT ARE HEADING TO THE GRAND FINAL! ✅🐉 #BLASTPremier pic.twitter.com/eIDL6fK71A
— BLAST Premier 💥 (@BLASTPremier) November 2, 2024
In their upcoming best-of-five grand final against G2, Spirit hopes to end a four-match losing streak against NiKo and the G2 squad.
Esports betting sites have marked G2 as -188.68 favourites for the grand final, with Spirit considered outsiders at +137.
The final series of the event will kick off at 6pm SGT in Singapore.
