by In a thrilling series, M80 pulled off a surprising 2-1 (13-2, 16-19, 22-19) upset against G2 Esports, sending them down to the Last Chance Stage of Group B at the 19th season of the ESL Pro League in Malta.
The Counter-Strike match, spanning three maps with multiple overtimes, showcased M80’s resilience and G2’s struggles.
What a marathon of a match! ?
After 91 rounds of Counter-Srike, @M80gg defeat @G2CSGO, sending them to the Group B Last Chance Bracket at #ESLProLeague S19
13-2 Ancient
16-19 Inferno
22-19 Vertigo pic.twitter.com/Q1XwpZH59E— ESL Counter-Strike (@ESLCS) April 26, 2024
The series began with a dominant performance from M80 on Ancient, taking a 13-2 victory.
Despite G2’s early warning after winning a force buy on the CT side, M80’s lead was challenged.
On Inferno, G2 fought back from a 1-7 deficit, forcing overtime and eventually winning, with Ilya ‘m0NESY’ Osipov leading the charge.
Vertigo followed a similar pattern, with G2 clawing back from a 7-2 deficit to force overtime again and eventually winning the series.
Despite M80 having several match points, they failed to close out, leading to a tense conclusion on the ninth match point, which M80 finally secured.
G2’s frustration was evident, with their Danish in-game leader expressing embarrassment in a tweet after the match. They now face Falcons in the Last Chance Stage.
On the other hand, M80’s victory set up a rematch against BetBoom, the team that initially sent them to the lower bracket.
Despite feeling they threw many rounds, M80 managed to regain their energy and secure the win.
Welcome to the #ESLProLeague Season 19 Playoffs
?? @FaZeClan ?? pic.twitter.com/DJPXAlbFLU
— ESL Counter-Strike (@ESLCS) April 26, 2024
In another series, FaZe Clan secured their spot in the ESL Pro League playoffs by defeating Eternal Fire 2-1 (9-13, 13-11, 13-8) in a three-map battle.
FaZe struggled on Anubis and Mirage but managed to level up on Inferno, winning comfortably after some key plays, including a momentum-turning 1vs3 by Helvijs ‘broky’ Saukants.
FaZe’s Finn ‘karrigan’ Andersen expressed relief at having some days off before the playoffs, indicating they would focus on improving their performance on Anubis and Ancient.
The final series of the day saw BetBoom qualify for the playoffs after claiming a 2-1 (7-13, 13-6, 16-14) victory in a marathon series against M80.
Congratulations @BetBoomTeam! They have made it to the #ESLProLeague Season 19 Playoffs ???? pic.twitter.com/hXlKV2oGBJ
— ESL Counter-Strike (@ESLCS) April 26, 2024
Despite M80’s strong start on Ancient, BetBoom managed to turn the tide and secure victories on Mirage and Anubis, completing a double over M80 in the tournament.
Lastly, Sharks and Imperial became the first two teams to be eliminated from ESL Pro League S19 after suffering their third straight defeat of the event.
