BLAST.tv Paris Major EU RMR B: Monte qualify for Major, Astralis are eliminated

Monte secure a seat at the BLAST.tv Paris Major while Ninjas in Pyjamas, Aurora, and ENCE prevail in their elimination match at the European B RMR.

Monte defeated FORZE in two straight maps to earn a berth at the BLAST.tv Paris Major. With wins over ENCE and Cloud9 and a best-of-three series loss to Heroic, Monte had a 2-1 record entering the match against FORZE.

The Ukrainian team first destroyed Monte on Anubis with an outstanding overall performance before Mohammad ‘BOROS’ Malhas charged in and put an end to it with a 16-9 triumph on Overpass. Monte will now focus on their performance in the third-place decider bracket on Friday and Saturday. The winner of the three-team bracket will earn the final available spot on the Legends Stage.

Aurora and ENCE survive another day at European RMR

Aurora ousted Eternal Fire from the BLAST.tv Paris Major Europe RMR B while keeping their hopes alive with a 2-1 victory in a dramatic best-of-three series. The series, which was an intense bloodbath, started with Aurora taking the opening map Mirage 19-15 in overtime before Eternal Fire retaliated and overcame a 5-11 deficit to win 16-12 on Anubis.

The cutthroat series only become more intense in the decider, which entered overtime after both the team fought head-to-neck for their survival. Aurora eventually closed out the series with a 19-16 victory as their star player Aleksandr ‘KENSI’ Gurkin thwarted away Ömer “imoRR” Karataş’s heroic efforts to save Eternal Fire. With this defeat, the Turkish team finished the competition with a 1-3 record, winning over Astralis and losing to Ninjas in Pyjamas, Cloud9, and Aurora in the elimination match.

In the second knockout match, ENCE also avoided elimination from the BLAST.tv Paris Major Europe RMR B competition with a 2-0 victory over 500. With losses to Monte and FORZE, ENCE’s tournament lives were in jeopardy, but following victories against iNation and 500, they are now just one victory away from qualifying for the Paris Major.

NIP upset Astralis to end their hope for the Paris Major

Ninjas in Pyjamas defeated Astralis 2-1 to eliminate them from contention for a berth in the BLAST.tv Paris Major. If the Swedish team beat BIG in their 2-2 clash on Friday, they will qualify for the Major, but if they lose, they will have to compete in the last-chance qualifiers, which will take place on April 14–15.

The Danes, on the other hand, suffered early best-of-one losses to Vitality and Eternal Fire to enter the elimination series, where they beat Spirit before ultimately dropping the decisive best-of-three series against NIP. It is a huge setback for the Danish team, which has long struggled to find a consistent form. While Astralis’ performance has slightly improved recently, as evidenced by their qualification for IEM Dallas and one notable playoff appearance at ESL One Cologne, their performance at the European RMR forced them to miss the last CS:GO Major qualifier.

Header: Michal Konkol/BLAST