After a marathon series, Renegades have eliminated Gambit Esports from the i-League StarSeries Season 5 LAN finals.
The match was scrappy and hard-fought, with opening map Cache ending in a quadruple overtime situation. Neither team was able to have consistent control throughout the opening game. With so many overtimes and no team really putting in a good performance it almost felt that the map would never end. But it was Renegades who eventually claimed a victory, 28-25, 53 rounds into the map.
Although such a loss tends to deprive the losing side of any kind of momentum, Gambit were able to respond with a quick 16-5 victory on Overpass by consistently shutting down Renegades on the CT-side.
Mirage would come to be the deciding map of the series, and just like the opener on Cache neither team played what could be considered anything like perfect CS:GO. Despite winning the opening pistol round, Gambit answered back on the third round, and won the next four in a row.
Renegades took the first half of the map with one round to spare. The team also nabbed the second pistol round of the map, and built up their lead to a strong 13-7 lead. It looked all but done for Renegades, but just as Renegades were in prime position to end the series comfortably Gambit responded.
The map got drawn out substantially, with Gambit winning round after round, eroding the strong lead Renegades had spent the entire half establishing. Renegades had a chance to end the series with the score at 14-12 and Gambit’s economy struggling, but Renegades missed the opportunity and overtime beckoned.
But after more than four hours on the server Renegades put an end to the ordeal, winning a final 16-14 map to bring the curtain down on a series to forget for most fans.
Gambit didn’t end up as the first team to be eliminated, but only by virtue of their drawn out slog against Renegades. Chinese team Vici Gaming Flash were the first team to fall to 0-3 as NRG finally claimed their first win of the tournament.
The 1-1 games are already underway, before the undefeated teams clash at the end of the day. The winners of SK Gaming vs. Team Liquid and Mousesports vs. AGO Esports will claim the first two spots in the quarterfinals.
