Astralis through to group final

Overpass kicked off the series in this European clash, with NRG getting out to a 3-1 win after winning a force buy in the second round. Astralis labored hard to prevent NRG from taking a significant lead, and their efforts paid off towards the end of the half as they kept the Germans' offense in check.

Up 9-6, Astralis picked up where they left off and won the first three rounds of the second half to increase their lead to 12-6. Many believed that the map would soon come to an end, but then we started to see the cracks in Astralis' armor.

The Danish team's inability to string rounds together cost them dearly and allowed NRG to build up their bank. The rounds edged out by Astralis were few and far between, and NRG kept pressing on, eventually cutting the gap to two rounds (12-14).

But then a critical over-extension on their part put Astralis on the brink of victory, with the Danes getting their 16th round on the board soon after.

dupreeh and device led the charge on Overpass

Map two was Cache, where Astralis got out to a quick 7-1 lead even after losing the pistol round. That was when Johannes "⁠tabseN⁠" Wodarz went huge and pulled off a Tec9 ace to give NRG some breathing room. That round ended up turning the game on its head as the German team were simply dominant during the final stages of the half, cutting the gap to just three rounds.

The second half began with NRG taking the first three rounds to level the score at 9-9. Every round win by Astralis was quickly countered by NRG, forcing the Danes to call a timeout in a bid to adjust their offense. The move worked out as Astralis had planned as they put together a string of three rounds to reach match point, but then NRG crawled back into the game and forced overtime.

tabseN played out of his mind on Cache, but it was not enough 

Astralis acquitted themselves well on the Terrorist side and took a narrow 2-1 lead going into the second half, in which they would secure back-to-back rounds to seal a hard-fought victory that puts them through to Friday's TBS final.

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