Cloud9 secure qualification to BLAST Fall Finals 2023

The BLAST Premier: Fall European Showdown 2023 is history, and after 5 days of intense and exciting matches, we have Cloud9 secures qualification to the BLAST Premier: Fall Finals 2023 after crushing BIG 2-0 in the European Grand Final.

Undoubtedly, this is a great result for Cloud9’s super lineup, which had not shown a great level until now. However, the fact of beating teams like OG, G2, and now BIG in this online tournament makes them undoubtedly gain much more confidence.

On the other hand, we cannot detract from the merits of BIG, a team that, although not consistent during 2023, managed to leave no more than ENCE on the road. Now, the teams are preparing for a somewhat complicated future, as CS2 has not started in the best way due to bugs in the game. However, all new games start this way, and little by little, Valve will solve the inconveniences.

Let’s see what happened in the series between Cloud9 and BIG in the Grand Final of BLAST Premier: Fall European Showdown 2023.

Cloud9 apply a clean sweep against BIG

We all expected a balanced match where either could take the win, and so it was. The fact that Cloud9 applied a reverse sweep against BIG does not mean that they were superior to their rivals. Moreover, the German squad had their chances to win important rounds and, above all, to win either of the two maps.

The series took place on Ancient and Anubis.

Ancient

It all started on Ancient, BIG’s map pick, where we enjoyed a back-and-forth match where either team could have won.

In the first half, Cloud9 started very well on their CT Side, getting a close 8-7 win. Also, it is worth mentioning that Sergey “Ax1Le” Rykhtorov continues to be the main reference of this team, as the Russian finished with 117.2 ADR and 1.62 Rating this first half.

Then, at the change of sides, BIG managed to get ahead on the scoreboard 11-8 by winning the first 4 rounds. But this only made Cloud9 wake up and hit back in a big way, as they won 8 of the next 10 rounds to seal their 16-13 victory.

.@C9CSGO takes @BIGCLANgg‘s map pick and are on Anubis away from Copenhagen!#BLASTPremier pic.twitter.com/kbgz1boMTl

— BLAST Premier 💥 (@BLASTPremier) October 8, 2023

Overpass

Then, the teams moved to Overpass, Cloud9’s map pick, where we also had a very balanced, intense, and exciting match.

For the second consecutive map, Cloud9, starting on their CT Side, got a partial victory by 8-7 thanks to the level and determination of Ax1le.

Then, at the change of sides, BIG again started very well by winning the first 5 rounds and placing themselves 12-7 ahead on the scoreboard. However, as happened on the first map, Cloud9 woke up immediately, thanks to Ilya “Perfecto” Zalutskiy and Dmitry “sh1ro” Sokolov, to turn the score around and take the victory by 16-12.

.@C9CSGO, YOUR EU SHOWDOWN CHAMPIONS! 🏆

Can’t wait to see them in Royal Arena, and GG to @BIGCLANANgg for putting up a damn good fight 🫡#BLASTPremier pic.twitter.com/y78CBA2TIK

— BLAST Premier 💥 (@BLASTPremier) October 8, 2023

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