Fnatic have overcome Immortals 2-1 in the second semi-final, securing a placement in the grand final against SK Gaming.
de_Inferno - 16:13 (8:7, 8:6)
Game One saw the action start on Inferno, and the pistols gave the Brazilians a great start. Dennis "dennis" Edmann went down first before Freddy "KRiMZ" Johansson and Olof "olofmeister" Kajbjer followed him to the grave, leaving IMT perfectly poised to go 1-0 up, which they duly did. The early stages were more in Immortals' favour, but rounds were traded and despite IMT looking flustered, they were able to match pace and get to 3-3. Seven went to Fnatic, but the crucial eighth went back and forth. IMT planted, and great positioning on the site saw Fnatic walk to their deaths, making it 4-4 and anybody’s game at this stage.
Clearly concerned, Fnatic took a double AWP at the cost of some utility, clearly feeling they needed to win round nine. When Jesper "JW" Wecksell was floored by Henrique "HEN1" Teles it left them in a tight spot, before Dennis "dennis" Edmann went down, leaving IMT with a 5v3. Despite some good work by Robin "flusha" Rönnquist, Olof "olofmeister" Kajbjer and Freddy "KRiMZ" Johanssonwere not able to clutch the round, leaving their team broke and 5-4 behind. A double from Ricardo "boltz" Prass in the next won that for IMT too, but Olof "olofmeister" Kajbjer was at least able to save his AK. Three more rounds went to IMT in swift succession, despite some great work by their opponents. Something had to change for Fnatic if they weren’t to lose the game, with Dennis "dennis" Edmann and Olof "olofmeister" Kajbjer combining to win their first round in a while. They weren’t back in it just yet, but with IMT forced into a half buy situation, with only Ricardo "boltz" Prass enjoying an AK, there was enough to encourage the Swedes and bring the score to a respectable 8-7 at the half.
The first round of the second half saw only Lucas "steel" Lopes and Vito "kNg" Giuseppe left standing after early tickles, with the sub going down to leave the former in a 1v3, which he politely declined. This round loss meant that pistols for IMT were the order of round two as well, which gave the Swedes a relatively simple win. More pistols came out in the third act of the second half for IMT, and once more Fnatic made swift work of their foes despite some clever initial moves. That was the eco Immortals needed though, and they bought into the next, immediately taking advantage and increasing their damage. However, although Fnatic were left with just two men, IMT could not plant, giving another round to the Swedes.
At this point we’d have expected Olof "olofmeister" Kajbjer and co to stretch their lead and take the game away, but it’s not 2015 anymore, and Immortals know that. At 11-8 up, Fnatic to B with just ten second of the round left, meaning only perfect play would have given them the win, and unsurprisingly they were not able to deliver that. In the end, they best they could do was save an AWP as IMT made it 9-11. Henrique "HEN1" Teles took down Olof "olofmeister" Kajbjer at the start of the next round, before the Ts pushed banana, right into an IMT trap. Immortals were back in the game at 10-11, and even being slapped back down right away to 10-12 (with a knife in Lucas’s back for good measure) could not stifle their belief. Despite their lack of money, IMT took a double AWP setup into the 23rd round, sacrificing utility, and Vito "kNg" Giuseppe made great work of it to pick up some crucial frags and make it 11-12. Just as it seemed like the Swedish side was in trouble, they pulled off something crazy on a semi eco round. Olof "olofmeister" Kajbjer truly earned his ‘meister’ suffix, pulling off a top tier sneak into lurk on the site to get the kills required to win the round for his team.
The enigma came back in the next though, as an eco from IMT that should have given Fnatic a shot at game point crashed and burned in the face of Lucas and Henrique "HEN1" Teles , before the Swedes took a full eco in the next and were punished, leaving us as 13 apiece. Fnatic lost two players to a molotov at the start of the next round, to the confusion of the commentators, and that schoolboy error played perfectly into Brazilian hands. With Immortals 14-13 up and knowing their opponents were in disarray, their confidence was sky high, and even with Fnatic shaking off their errors, things quickly progressed to match point for IMT. Vito "kNg" Giuseppe took out two at the start of the final round to give IMT the advantage, and they honestly deserved it. A winning position had been thrown away by Fnatic, but IMT still had to take advantage, and did that fully. Game one was over in favour of the Brazilian side, and the mental toll the loss took on Fnatic was obvious as they left the stage to regroup.
de_Overpass - 9:16 (6:9, 3:7)
The second map saw quite the malarkey of a start, as Immortals opted for an aggressive push on the defence, losing three members off the bat. In an attempt to patch up the mistakes, Henrique "HEN1" Teles dispatched two members, bringing the body count to 2v2. The legendary Olof "olofmeister" Kajbjer found himself in a 1v2 situation after Robin "flusha" Rönnquist kicked the bucket, and despite the disadvantage managed to clutch it out, dispatching both members of Immortals and securing a 1:0 lead for Fnatic. A force buy from Immortals in round 2, to no avail, as the anti-eco devices ripped the defence to shreds. A similar story in round 3 allowed a 3:0 lead for Fnatic.
The time was nigh for Immortals' full buy round, and the devices were used to their full potential, as the Brazilians cleared bank without a single casualty, securing the first digit of the map. Further strengthening of the economy seemingly enabled Immortals to play with a lot more aggression and confidence, something that clearly caught the Swedes off guard. Round 5 fell in favour of the Brazilians and in round 6 Fnatic simply weren't able to but, leading to an equaliser at 3:3. A round exchange followed, leading to yet another equaliser at 4:4. Rounds continually fell in the lap of Fnatic, with a spectacular performance seen from Dennis "dennis" Edmann in round 10, where the Swede made work of three members of Immortals in quick succession, opening up further opportunities for his team. Faced with a 4:8 deficit, the Brazilians snapped back, with Ricardo "boltz" Prass utilising the XM1014 against Jesper "JW" Wecksell to great success, giving the Swede a taste of his own medicine. The remainder of the half saw Immortals accrue a further round, whilst Fnatic managed to land a total of nine.
Switching to the defence, the Brazilians managed to score a round after some great pistol action from the duo of Ricardo "boltz" Prass and Henrique "HEN1" Teles , who managed to secure two and three kills respectively, as well as a 7th round for their team. A force buy from Fnatic was seen following the loss, one that provide to yield fruits, as a terrific performance from Freddy "KRiMZ" Johansson and Dennis "dennis" Edmann on the SSG08 accounted for two deceased terrorists, whilst his teammates made good work of their CZ75s. After strengthening their economy, the home crowd favourites bought up and made sure to seize the opportunity, smashing with a 12:7 lead. Round 20 saw Immortals grab the second round of the half, with Lucas "LUCAS1" Teles scoring a 2k. Following the loss, Fnatic had their eyes set on victory. Round after round was accrued by the Swedish squad, all the way to map point at 15:8. Henrique "HEN1" Teles proved to be the thorn in Fnatic's side, as his AWP prowess proved to be lethal in a 1v2 situation, keeping his team in the map. Whilst the effort from Immortals was valiant, Fnatic closed out on round 25, after a successful team ace onto the Brazilians.
de_Mirage - 1:16 (1:14, 0:2)
Once the best player in the world, Olof "olofmeister" Kajbjer shone through in the first round of the map whilst defending the B bomb site. The Swede managed to accrue three frags onto the invading Ts who were making their way through the apartments, greatly increasing the chance of success for his team. It turned out that this performance gave the Swedish roster the boost needed to overpower a force-buy from the Brazilians in the next round, as well as the follow-up, producing a 3:0 lead. Immortals stepped up on their full buy, demolishing the defence having lost a single member in the face of Lucas "steel" Lopes. Despite a round setback, Fnatic continued their victory streak, securing a round in a 5v5 after-plant situation.
Immortals' hopes rested on Henrique "HEN1" Teles shoulders, as the team's AWP found himself in a 1v3 situation, which unfortunately he wasn't able to realise, as Robin "flusha" Rönnquist landed and M4A4 spray onto the Brazilian. No mercy from Fnatic, as round after round fell in favour of the Swedes. All members of the roster were fired up, with particular attention drawn to Jesper "JW" Wecksell, who managed to slam four members of Immortals with the AWP on round 9, securing his team an 8:1 lead. Nerves were seemingly getting the better part of the Brazilians, as a favourable 4v2 situation was converted by the Swedes, after the duo of Freddy "KRiMZ" Johansson and Robin "flusha" Rönnquist dispatched the entire opposition, followed by a bomb defuse. Jesper "JW" Wecksell reminded all viewers of his capabilities and former glory, as some incredible AWPing was seen from the Swede. Rounds 12 and 14 saw 3ks from the Swedish AWPer, with the live crowd vocally erupting in awe. Absolute domination meant a 14:1 finish for Fnatic, placing victory withing hands reach.
Fnatic rushed onto the B bombsite in the second pistol round, crushing all defending CTs, all the while losing only a single member in Olof "olofmeister" Kajbjer. The Wonderchild strikes once more, on this occasions clutching out a 1v3 situation. Dispatching a member on the A bombsite, the Swede rotated to the B bombsite, catching the Brazilians off guard. Picking a fight against a rotating Ricardo "boltz" Prass equalised the body count to 1v1, allowing JW the surprise element after returning to the B bomb site. Lucas "steel" Lopes was the last remaining CT, as well as the final victim of this monstrous play from the legendary AWPer. Following this clutch, JW single-handedly secured his team a fast track into the grand final against SK Gaming, sporting a rather incredible 16:1 score.
Image courtesy of DreamHack Flickr/ Adela Sznajder
