NIP excludes 9 Pandas from EU RMR
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The European team overcame 9 Pandas in a tense match to continue their journey at RMR.
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Ninjas in Pajamas (NIP) won their first match of group 2-2 of Perfect World Shanghai Major Europe RMR B, defeating 9 Pandas in a tense series thanks to a stellar performance from AWPer Artem "r1nkle " Moroz.
Currently, Gareth "MisteM" Ries and his teammates are waiting for the results from the remaining matches in group 2-2. If Astralis and Spirit win, NIP will avoid the deciding match for 7th place. Conversely, a win by Passion UA or Sashi will ensure NIP must participate in this extra match.
The important match between Ninjas in Pajamas and 9 Pandas begins on the Ancient map, selected by NIP. The Russian team quickly took a 7-1 lead. However, thanks to r1nkle's spectacular performance with a rating of 2.22 on the CT-side in the second half, NIP came back and ended the map with a score of 13-10.
On the map Dust2, chosen by 9 Pandas, the same scenario happened again. Aleksandr "shalfey" Marenov's team led 10-2, but once again, r1nkle helped NIP close the gap. This time, however, NIP couldn't complete the comeback as they lost a crucial anti-eco round, allowing 9 Pandas to claim a 13-10 win.
In the decisive map Mirage, NIP for the first time played evenly from the beginning, thanks to the contribution of reserve player Jacob "jocab" Nerheden. After an 8-8 tie, a crucial 4-kill situation from Fredrik "REZ" Sterner helped NIP break out, closing the map with a score of 13-8 and claiming a 2-1 final victory.