Field Level Media
21 Sep 2023, 09:10 GMT+10
(Photo credit: Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK)
Cloud9 and G2 Esports each completed a sweep on Wednesday in the upper-bracket quarterfinals of Group D at the ESL Pro League Season 18 event in Malta.
Cloud9 blanked Eternal Fire 2-0, while G2 downed Lynn Vision Gaming 2-0.
The other Group D winners on Wednesday were Complexity Gaming, who beat 9INE 2-1, and Virtus.pro, who edged Team Liquid 2-1.
Wednesday's four losers were relegated to the mid bracket.
The $850,000 Counter-Strike: Global Offensive event features 32 teams broken up into four groups of eight. Group-stage winners advance to the quarterfinals; runners-up advance to the Round of 12 as the high seeds; third-place teams advance to the Round of 16 as the high seeds; and fourth-place teams advance to the Round of 16 as the low seeds.
The group stage is triple elimination with upper, middle and lower brackets. All matches are best-of-three until the grand final, which is best-of-five.
The tournament runs through Oct. 1. The winner earns $200,000 and qualifies for the 2024 IEM Katowice event and the 2023 BLAST World Final.
On Wednesday, Cloud9 won 16-11 on Vertigo and 16-12 on Overpass. Russian Sergey "Ax1Le" Rykhtorov led the winning side with a match-high 52 kills to go along with a plus-19 kills-deaths differential. All five of Eternal Fire's members had negative K-D ratios.
G2 Esports opened with a 19-16 overtime victory on Anubis before cruising to a 16-5 triumph on Inferno. G2's Rasmus "HooXi" Nielsen of Denmark led all players with 49 kills and a plus-14 K-D differential.
After Complexity took Anubis 16-11, 9INE prevailed 16-12 on Vertigo to level the match. Complexity clinched by prevailing 16-13 on Ancient, getting a huge boost from Norwegian Hakon "hallzerk" Fjaerli, who racked up 75 kills for the match.
Dzhami "Jame" Ali posted 67 kills and a plus-22 K-D differential for the all-Russian Virtus.pro squad, which sandwiched wins on Inferno (16-11) and Anubis (16-14) around a 19-17 overtime setback on Mirage to get past Liquid.
Group D action continues Thursday with four matches:
--Cloud9 vs. Complexity Gaming (upper-bracket semifinals)
--Virtus.pro vs. G2 Esports (upper-bracket semifinals)
--Eternal Fire vs. 9INE (mid-bracket Round 1)
--Team Liquid vs. Lynn Vision Gaming (mid-bracket Round 1)
ESL Pro League Season 18 prize pool
1. $200,000, 3,000 BLAST Premier points -- TBD
2. $90,000, 2,000 BLAST points -- TBD
3-4. $50,000, 1,200 points -- TBD
5-8. $35,000, 500 points -- TBD
9-12. $25,000 -- TBD
13-16. $20,000 -- TBD
17-20. $15,000 -- Gamer Legion, MIBR, 5yclone, TBD
21-28. $8,000 -- Ninjas in Pyjamas, Grayhound Gaming, Heroic, Evil Geniuses, Imperial Esports, Apeks, two teams TBD
29-32. $4,000 -- ORKS, Rooster, M80, TBD
--Field Level MediaGet a daily dose of Sweden Sun news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Sweden Sun.
More InformationPARIS, France: The Paris Airshow kicked off on June 16, attracting attention with expected aircraft orders, but overshadowed by the...
by Billion Temesghen As public support for a common social media age of consent gains momentum in European countries, legislation...
by Xinhua writer Zhang Yunlong BEIJING, June 20 (Xinhua) -- In the first half of 2025, China's cultural landscape has been energized...
Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], June 19 (ANI): In a historic first, Karnataka State Lawn Tennis Association (KSLTA) will host the prestigious...
New Delhi [India], June 19 (ANI): Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Thursday lauded Indian chess grandmaster Divya...
New Delhi [India], June 19 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailed Indian chess grandmaster Divya Deshmukh for defeating world number...
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina: Since taking office in December 2023, Argentine President Javier Milei has implemented sweeping austerity...
LEMBATA, Indonesia: Indonesia's Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki erupted dramatically on June 18, generating substantial ash and smoke plumes....
MADRID, Spain: A routine oversight by Spain's power grid operator, REE, has been identified as the trigger behind the large-scale blackout...
WASHINGTON, DC - In a bid to defuse speculation, U.S. President Donald Trump says he will make his decision on whether to have the...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: A quiet shift inside the Trump administration has stalled a key diplomatic initiative aimed at pushing Russia toward...
NEW DELHI, India: Indian investigators are examining the black boxes from a Boeing 787 Dreamliner to determine the cause of a catastrophic...