Cloud9 narrowly beat Winstrike, compLexity head to playoffs over BIG
The first two North American matches at the Major saw Cloud9 look to avoid elimination against Winstrike, and compLexity looking to become the first team to the playoffs here at London.
The first game saw Cloud9 finally get off the mark here in London, as they faced Winstrike on Inferno. The first half on the CT-side was extremely dominant for Cloud9, losing only three rounds in total as they were in control from the pistol round to the end, including a nine-round streak through the middle of the half, taking a 12-3 lead. The second half saw a reversal in their fortunes, with Winstrike securing an eco-round win after Cloud9's pistol, and from there they rolled forward to eventually even the game up 14-14.
Cloud9 eventually claimed match point, but Winstrike kept themselves alive just a little bit longer to take the game to overtime. From here, the American side struck it well, winning all the rounds in the first half, before finishing it off in the second with a 19-16 win, keeping them in the Major, saved in part by Timothy "autimatic" Ta's 32 kills throughout the map.
The second game played, and the first 2-0 match of the Major, saw compLexity face the Germans of BIG on Nuke, the first time that map had been played all tournament. compLexity were the strongest team out of the blocks on the first half, with their T-side taking seven rounds in a row to start. BIG eventually came back into the half, but it was the North Americans who went in as 9-6 leaders at the break. The second half was even stronger for compLexity, with a CT-side that saw them only drop two rounds to the Germans for a 16-8 win, helped along by Jaccob "yay" Whiteaker's 109.3 ADR.
These results mean compLexity are headed to the playoffs at the SSE Wembley Arena next week, and Cloud9 head to the 1-2 pool for the next round of Swiss. The next game featuring a North American team will be MIBR vs. G2 in the 1-1 match.