Spirit have secured a place in the BLAST Open Porto 2026 playoffs after defeating G2 2-0 in the Group A upper-bracket semifinal.
The reigning Esports World Cup champions won Dust2 13-6 before closing G2’s pick of Cache 13-9. The victory guarantees Spirit a place among the final six teams that will compete at the Super Bock Arena in Porto, while G2 remain alive in the group stage.
Spirit take complete control on Dust2
G2 opened the series with a promising 3-0 start on Dust2, but that advantage disappeared quickly.
Spirit responded with six consecutive rounds on the T side and repeatedly found clean entries into G2’s defensive setups. Their pressure forced G2 into several saves and prevented the European lineup from building a stable economy.
By halftime, Spirit had transformed the early deficit into a 9-3 lead.
- G2 started Dust2 3-0
- Spirit answered with six consecutive rounds
- Spirit led 9-3 at halftime
- Dust2 ended 13-6
G2 managed to collect three additional rounds after the side switch, but Spirit remained comfortable once rifles returned to both teams.
The map ended 13-6, immediately putting G2 under pressure on their own pick.
Cache offers G2 more resistance
Cache was significantly closer.
G2 selected the map hoping to reset the series, but Spirit again produced the stronger opening half. They entered the break with an 8-4 advantage and were able to keep G2 at a distance despite a better defensive showing after halftime.
G2 eventually won five CT-side rounds, but Spirit found the four they needed to close the map 13-9 and finish the series without requiring Ancient.
Spirit never allowed G2 to force a deciding map, converting both halves of the series into controlled finishes once they established an economic advantage.
| Map | G2 | Spirit |
|---|---|---|
| Dust2 | 6 | 13 |
| Cache | 9 | 13 |
Cache also produced one of the series’ standout moments when donk recorded an ace in round 17.
donk leads Spirit again
Danil “donk” Kryshkovets was once again Spirit’s highest-rated player across the series.
He finished with 31 kills, 23 deaths, 86.9 ADR and a 1.45 HLTV Rating 3.0. tN1R followed closely with a 1.36 rating, while sh1ro ended at 1.24.
The distribution gave Spirit three players above a 1.20 rating.
- donk: 31-23, 1.45 rating
- tN1R: 32-24, 1.36 rating
- sh1ro: 29-18, 1.24 rating
- Spirit won the series 2-0
The balanced output is particularly important because Spirit did not need donk to completely take over every round. tN1R actually recorded the highest kill total in the series, while sh1ro finished with only 18 deaths.
That level of support made G2’s attempts to isolate Spirit’s star rifler much less effective.
huNter- struggles through difficult series
G2’s individual numbers tell a very different story.
MATYS finished as their highest-rated player across the two maps with a 1.00 rating, while NertZ ended at 0.97.
r1nkle recorded a positive 29-22 kill-death score but finished with a 0.90 rating under HLTV’s Rating 3.0 system.
The biggest difficulties came from huNter-. He ended the series with only nine kills and 29 deaths, producing a 0.44 rating. On Dust2 alone, he recorded three kills and 17 deaths.
HeavyGod also struggled overall, finishing with a 0.82 series rating despite recovering with a stronger performance on Cache.
Spirit guarantee their place in Porto
The Group A upper-bracket semifinal carried an important reward: the winner qualified directly for the playoff stage.
Spirit have therefore secured their trip to the Super Bock Arena, where the final six teams will decide the BLAST Open Porto champion.
Their result also continues strong form following the Esports World Cup title. The team arrived in Porto as one of the leading favorites and has so far justified that status.
G2 are not eliminated. The loss simply removes the direct upper-bracket route and forces them to continue through the remaining group-stage matches.
Assessment
Spirit’s victory was convincing because it came without requiring a particularly chaotic series.
Dust2 demonstrated how quickly they can punish defensive weakness once their T side gains momentum, while Cache showed that they can protect an early advantage even when the opponent begins to recover.
The most encouraging sign is the distribution of individual impact. donk remains the team’s main star, but tN1R and sh1ro provided enough firepower to make Spirit difficult to target strategically.
For G2, the defeat highlights a different problem. Several players struggled simultaneously, and the team never generated enough consistent individual pressure to force Spirit into uncomfortable situations.
Spirit are already through to the Porto playoffs. G2 now have to respond through the group stage if they want another opportunity to challenge them later in the tournament.
