G2 survived with an exciting victory over HEROIC at the Shanghai Major.

Nikola "NiKo" Kovac's tenure at G2 Esports continued with a surprise 2-1 (6-13, 9-13, 16-14) win over the enthusiastic HEROIC at the Shanghai Major, which included one of the item of the year on Mirage.

HEROIC's fairytale journey ended at the hands of G2. For a moment, it looked like the squad, who are in the midst of their own rebuild, would see the end of Nikolai "NiKo" Kovac's tenure at G2—but the hour has come, the man has arrived, and Mario "malbsMd" Samayoa stepped up when needed most.

HEROIC opened with a strong start despite NiKo's sparkling performance

NiKo's time at G2 continues. (Photo via Perfect World)

G2 entered the quarter-finals as favorites against a fearless HEROIC team that shocked the world last week, eliminating Natus Vincere, the number one team in the world, from the major tournament in the Elimination Phase.

But this young team proved it was no fluke, taking down G2 at Ancient in the opening map of the series. AWPer Abdul "degster" Gasanov led the way for HEROIC in a 13-6 victory, but NiKo (22-12, 1.69 rating) stole the show even though G2 lost quickly.

This superstar rifleman's form remains solid at Nuke. G2 quickly converted a narrow 7-5 lead as NiKo took complete control of the series—he racked up 20 kills in just half CT as he led the team to a 13-9 rebound, forcing Mirage must enter the third map.

MalbsMd took a big step forward as G2 battled HEROIC

MalbsMd showed his best at Mirage. (Photo via Perfect World)

However, the recovery attempt from G2 seems to have ended. NiKo was exhausted, only scoring 13 kills in regular play, but instead, Mario "malbsMd" Samayoa — who would take over NiKo's role at G2 after NiKo left Shanghai, stepped up. throne. HEROIC also accelerated with an excellent T side on the Mirage but after decisive rounds and absurd eco wins, no one could split and extra time was needed.

MalbsMd had 24 kills in regular time and played a key role in overtime, with a crazy one-on-three execution being the highlight among the highlights. HEROIC tried its best to continue the hunt but was eventually defeated. G2 held on and closed out the map with a single overtime at 16-14.

Little is known about who G2 will become after Shanghai now that NiKo's departure from Shanghai has been confirmed, but malbsMd has gradually established himself at Samurais. He will need to perform at his best if G2 wants to beat NiKo with a big win — they will need to beat either Vitality or FaZe in tomorrow's semi-finals.