Image courtesy of ESL
The first day of ESL One: New York is in the books. Here's a look at what happened.
The first day of ESL One: New York saw the eight contenders face off "Swiss" style, playing best-of-one games against opponents with matching scores, with only the initial matchups being predetermined. The teams play until they have three wins and qualify for the playoffs or lose three games and are disqualified. In every round after the first they will play against a randomly selected team with the same number of wins that they haven't yet faced.
First round:
Virtus.pro vs. 
fnatic
Winner: Virtus.pro 10:5, 6:1 (16:6)
Map: de_Cobblestone
MVP: Filip 'NEO' Kubski
The first game of the day was Virtus.pro and fnatic on Cobblestone, with VP starting on the CT side. After winning the pistol, the Polish team took the next four rounds to give them a 5-0 lead. Fnatic then took five rounds of their own before VP responded by taking the last five to end the half 10-5 over the Swedes. VP carried their momentum over to the second half, taking the pistol once again and dropping only one round before closing out the map 16-6.
Astralis vs. 
G2 Esports
Winner: Astralis 5:10, 11:3 (16:13)
Map: de_Dust2
MVP: Peter 'dupreeh' Rasmussen
The second matchup was Astralis versus G2 Esports, facing off on Dust II. Despite losing the pistol round, the Frenchmen got off to a good start on their CT side, winning some unlikely yet key rounds to end the half 10-5 over the Danes. In the second half, G2 took the pistol and the following eco rounds, putting themselves in a prime position to win the game. Astralis was having none of it, however, winning eleven straight rounds to defeat the French squad 16-13.
SK Gaming vs. 
OpTic Gaming
Winner: SK Gaming 9:6, 7:4 (16:10)
Map: de_Train
MVP: Keith 'NAF' Markovic
The third game played, SK against OpTic, took place on Train with the Brazilian team starting T side. Though they went down 1-5 early in the half, SK regained control and won all but the last round of the half to give them a 9-6 lead going into their CT side. OpTic retook the lead after winning their second pistol round and the following rifle, but a force-buy win from their opponents put them on the back foot, and SK went on to take the map 16-10.
Natus Vincere vs. 
Team Liquid
Winner: Natus Vincere 9:6, 7:3 (16:9)
Map: de_Mirage
MVP: Jonathan 'EliGE' Jablonowski
For the fourth and final game of round one, Na`Vi took on Team Liquid took on Mirage, beginning on the T side. After losing the pistol and the following round, Na`Vi won seven unanswered rounds, giving them a 7-2 lead. Despite a timeout and hindered by a poor economy, Liquid finished the half down 6-9. After losing the second pistol, Liquid made a case for themselves by winning the next three to bring them within one round of Na`Vi, but the CIS pulled it back, winning the map 16-9.
Second round:
fnatic vs. OpTic Gaming
Winner: fnatic 13:2, 3:1 (16:3)
Map: de_Train
MVP: Simon 'twist' Eliasson
The first game of round two saw fnatic and OpTic, both of whom lost their matches in round one, go toe-to-toe on Train. Starting on the CT side, fnatic took a quick 7-0 lead before OpTic answered with two of their own. Unfazed, fnatic took the last six rounds in a row to finish the half with a dizzying 13-2 lead. OpTic won a force-buy after losing the second half pistol, but fnatic responded by winning the next two rounds and taking the map convincingly, 16-3.
Team Liquid vs. G2 Esports
Winner: Team Liquid 13:2, 3:5 (16:7)
Map: de_Train
MVP: Josh 'jdm64' Marzano
After losing their initial games in round one, Team Liquid and G2 faced each other on Train, with Liquid Starting on the CT side. Winning the pistol, Liquid posted a quick 3-0 lead before G2 took the first rifle round. Unfortunately for the French side, they were only able to claim one more round before going into the second half, Liquid leading 13-2. G2 found a bit of late life in the second half, taking five rounds in a row before Liquid found their bearings and finished the game 16-7.
Natus Vincere vs. Virtus.pro
Winner: Natus Vincere 7:8, 9:1 (16:9)
Map: de_Train
MVP: 
Ladislav 'GuardiaN' Kovács
The third matchup in round two was Na`Vi versus Virtus.pro on Train, each team with one win already under their belts. The Polish team took the CT pistol and carried the momentum into a 5-2 lead before the half turned into a back-and-forth affair that ended only one round in VP’s favor, 8-7. Na`Vi imitated VP by taking the pistol on their CT side and more, relinquishing only one round and winning the map decisively, 16-9.
SK Gaming vs. Astralis
Winner: SK Gaming 7:8, 9:5 (16:9)
Map: de_Overpass
MVP: Fernando 'fer' Alvarenga
The last game of round two pitted SK against Astralis on Overpass, both teams having won their earlier matches in the first round. Astralis looked strong out of the gate, taking the CT pistol and racking up a 7-1 scoreline before the Brazilians responded by taking six rounds of their own. The Danish squad picked up the last round to win the half 8-7 going into their T side. SK won the second pistol convincingly but throughout the second half both teams went round for round, tying the game at 12-12. Finally, SK closed out the map with a score of 16-13.
Third round:
Virtus.pro vs. Team Liquid
Winner: Virtus.pro 11:4, 5:4 (16:8)
Map: de_Mirage
MVP: Pawe? 'byali' Bieli?ski
The first game in round three and the last of the day saw Virtus.pro face Team Liquid on Mirage. VP, starting on the T side, took the pistol and charged ahead to a six round lead. Liquid struggled to get things going for the remainder of the half, managing just four rounds by halftime. With an 11-4 advantage going into the second half, VP struggled a little, allowing Liquid four additional rounds before finishing the map soundly, 16-8.
The first day of ESL One: New York was action packed and full of excitement. The rest of the weekend will see a continuation of today's events, with rounds three, four, and five taking place on Saturday and the semi-finals and grand final taking place on Sunday.
