PGL Astana 2025: FURIA, Astralis & NaVi reach playoffs

Heading into the final day of the Swiss Stage at PGL Astana, the matchups are set. Check out the results from day four and who will clash on Wednesday.

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by Ciaran Jackman

May 13, 2025 0

The playoff picture is beginning to take shape at PGL Astana 2025, with FURIA Esports, Astralis, and Natus Vincere punching their tickets to the arena stage, while BIG, paiN Gaming, and HOTU have been sent packing.

A dramatic day of Counter-Strike 2 action saw veterans rise, new signings struggle, and last-chance contenders like G2 and MIBR push their campaigns to the brink.

FURIA find form in Kazakhstan

FURIA have ended a seven-month playoff drought dating back to Intel Extreme Masters Rio 2024, booking their spot in the quarter-finals with a commanding 2-0 win over ODDIK. The Brazilian squad looked confident and composed, even as ODDIK’s captain tried to will his side into the series with individual brilliance.

A highlight play from Mareks “⁠YEKINDAR⁠” Gaļinskis — a quad-kill on a full eco — symbolised FURIA’s grit. Kazakhstan native Danil “⁠molodoy⁠” Golubenko will now make his Big Event playoff debut on home soil at the Barys Arena, capping off a group stage where he, YEKINDAR, Yuri “⁠yuurih⁠” Santos, and the ever-reliable Kaike “⁠KSCERATO⁠” Cerato each stepped up at different moments.

Gabriel “⁠FalleN⁠” Toledo also impressed in his rifling role, boasting a 1.22 terrorist-side rating on Anubis and showing rapid adaptation since giving up the AWP.

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Astralis rebound under HooXi

Astralis secured their playoff berth with a 2-1 victory over Virtus.pro, powered by stand-in Rasmus “⁠HooXi⁠” Nielsen. The Danish caller, filling in with just nine days of prep, delivered both leadership and firepower — topping the scoreboard on Dust2 with 28 kills and a 1.31 rating.

His loose, confident approach seems to have energised Astralis, who rallied from deficits in both maps to overcome Virtus.pro.

Despite early leads on Dust2 and Ancient, VP faltered in crucial moments — including a disastrous 1v3 post-plant loss to HooXi simply hiding on site.

Astralis’ second-half surges have become a hallmark of their run, helped by strong performances from their fragging core, highlighted by Martin “⁠stavn⁠” Lund, who has found form in Astana.

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NaVi’s system holds strong against Aurora

Natus Vincere cruised past Aurora 2-0 with a workmanlike performance on Train and Inferno. Both maps were tight—13-11 and 13-10, respectively — but NaVi’s superior structure and composure shone through.

Valeriy “⁠b1t⁠” Vakhovskiy and Mihai “⁠iM⁠” Ivan starred on Train, countering Aurora’s constant fakes, while Aleksi “Aleksib” Virolainen’s mid-round calling on Inferno proved pivotal as NaVi overcame early struggles to string rounds together and close the series.

Aurora’s standout performer was Ismailcan “⁠XANTARES⁠” Dörtkardeş, who delivered multiple key retakes on Inferno. But the Turkish squad’s inconsistency — especially from Ali “⁠Wicadia⁠” Haydar Yalçın and Özgür “⁠woxic⁠” Eker — left them unable to convert momentum into sustained pressure.

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G2, MIBR & NiP win through to final day

G2 remain in contention after eliminating BIG 2-0, thanks in large part to a monstrous series from Mario “⁠malbsMd⁠” Samayoa. The Guatemalan rifler torched BIG with a 2.81 rating post-half on Dust2 and followed up with 21 kills on the counter-terrorist side of Mirage.

MIBR kept their playoff hopes alive with a 2-0 sweep of domestic rivals paiN Gaming, overturning early deficits on both Train (13-7) and Mirage (13-8). Strong mid-game adaptations and individual heroics from Felipe “⁠insani⁠” Yuji and Breno “⁠brnz4n⁠” Poletto secured the win.

Ninjas in Pyjamas recorded a dominant 2-0 win over HOTU, thanks to an outstanding performance from Artem “r1nkle” Moroz, who finished the series with server highs in kills (50), kill/death difference (+26), ADR (103.2), and rating (1.74).

Although they enter the final day of the Swiss Stage off the back of win-or-go-home victories, NiP are the only team that heads into their series as favourites with the best esports betting sites.