IEM Dallas has only one more match left to be played and it’s the Grand Final between G2 Esports and Team Vitality.
Both teams had to overcome formidable opponents to reach this point. So whoever wins, both of them should be held in high regard. This Grand Final will feature four of the top five players from 2023: NiKo and m0NESY for G2, ZywOo and Spinx for Vitality. The result will be determined to a large extent by how well these individuals perform.
G2’s Path To The Grand Final
GRANDDDDD FINALSSSSS 🏆
THANKS FOR CARRYING THE ENERGY TODAY, DALLAS. I NEEDED IT.
IT’S BEEN AMAZING. IT’S BEEN NOTHING BUT FKING FUN. ITS BEEN A HELLUVA TOURNAMENT!
BRING THAT SHIT FOR ONE LAST RIDE TOMORROW 🇺🇸🤍!!
VS VITALITY – ALL OR NOTHING 🏆🇺🇸
— Jake (@Stewie) June 2, 2024
G2 started the tournament in group A, with a victory against Team Falcons. The match was quite challenging: 13 – 10 on Anubis. Without m0NESY’s incredible performance (27 – 14), G2 would have lost.
In the second match, G2 encountered Vitality and lost badly: 6 – 13 on Dust 2, followed by a 5 – 13 on Anubis.
After this defeat, NiKo’s team had to defeat MOUZ and Team Liquid in the lower bracket to advance to the playoffs. Both teams were supposed to be a little bit stronger than them, but in the end they won by the skin of their teeth. The scores were 13 – 8, 5 – 13, 13 – 10 against MOUZ, and 11 – 13, 13 – 8, 13 – 11 against Liquid.
Thanks to these wins, G2 advanced to the quarterfinals, where they encountered another top team: FaZe Clan. However, for reasons we’re not aware of, karrigan’s team played far worse than everyone expected and the scores were 8 – 13, 2 – 13.
In the semifinals, G2 had to beat an opponent that was ranked 40 globally. However, 9z had defeated MOUZ, Team Liquid, and Team Vitality in the group stage, so they were not exactly the underdog. Despite the difficulties, G2 eventually won 11 – 13, 8 – 13.
The first half of both maps finished with a perfectly equal score. The second half was won both times by G2 thanks to NiKo and m0NESY. The other players did a good job as well but they didn’t shine.
Vitality’s Path To The Grand Final
Win 2-0 over Spirit !
Really happy about our performance today.
Didn’t need to show up when I had such good team mates.
Final tomorrow !— Dan Madesclaire (@Vitality_apEX) June 1, 2024
For Vitality, group A did not seem very challenging. But the first and third matches proved to be really difficult. Monte was defeated after overtime (12 – 16) and 9z could not be defeated despite the massive rank difference and ZywOo’s spectacular performance. The only easy match for Vitality in group A was the one played against G2.
In the playoffs, Vitality had to defeat HEROIC, who didn’t pose that big of a threat, and then Team Spirit, who were supposed to win with ease. But ZywOo simply said no. His score, 44 – 24, was sufficient to bring victory to his team.
Header: ESL
