#FaZe defeated #NinjasinPyjamas in the semi-final with a score of 2-1, pushing them one step closer to taking home the #BLASTPremierFallFinal title. The European team defeated Mirage comfortably before losing Overpass (11-16). They then bounced back with a tight victory over Nuke (16-14). (16-8)
FaZe will now play versus Heroic in the championship game on Sunday at 17:30. In Denmark, the squad led by Finn #karrigan Andersen faced up against the hometown favorites once, defeating the Danes 2-0 in the group round.
In addition, FaZe will be seeking to gain some much-needed confidence before the season-ending BLAST Premier World Final in Abu Dhabi in December by winning their first trophy since IEM Cologne in the grand final.
The Match Recap
To begin the contest, the two teams went to Overpass, which was chosen by Ninjas in Pyjamas. A 1vs3 clutch by Fredrik #REZ Sterner in the sixth round let the Swedish-majority team immediately build a 5-2 lead on the offensive and quickly try to defend their choice of map.
The Swedish team's precise and strategic T-side game plan was finally defeated by FaZe, who went on a six-round rampage to turn the tide of the match and secure a narrow 8-7 lead at the half.
At the start of the second half, the game turned into a back-and-forth contest, with neither side being able to string together more than three rounds at a time to sit on 11 rounds each. Ninjas in Pyjamas won this tough fight in the end; as a result, the Nordic team took control of the economy and put together a strong defensive wall that helped the team win, 16-11, after a seven-round winning streak.
Alexander #Aleksib With 27 kills to his credit and an impressive server-high rating of 1.53, Virolainen set the bar high for his teammates to follow in order to give his side a 1-0 lead.
Second map – Nuke
As soon as Nuke began, FaZe went on the attack in search of revenge. They made a statement by relentlessly harassing the A site on their way to a 6-1 offensive advantage. Thanks to a great effort by REZ, Ninjas in Pyjamas were able to close the gap. A hailstorm of fire from clever defensive setups allowed them to go on an eight-round winning streak and secure a 9-6 lead at the half.
The team led by Aleksib pushed their foot to the floor to win five of the opening six rounds and surge ahead to a commanding 14-7 scoreline at this stage. Ninjas in Pyjamas' confidence was soaring. By stringing together seven rounds of their own, FaZe avoided leaving Copenhagen early. This was made possible by multi-kill rounds from the Baltic team of Helvijs #broky Saukants and Robin “ropz” Kool, and the European team evened the score at 14-14.
While ropz caused the arena to roar with a brilliant 3k hold of the B site in the 30th round to keep FaZe's dreams of making it to the grand final alive, Ninjas in Pyjamas ended their opponents' streak with a 1vs1 in the 29th round to put one hand on match point.
From there, FaZe barely had the upper hand. Karrigan and company capitalized on the Royal Arena's excitement to win four of the six rounds, 19-17, and force a trip to the Mirage final map. By the end of OT, ropz had a whopping 32 kills, thanks to his incredible shooting and unwavering tactical awareness. He had a genuinely dominant performance to keep his side in the game.
Third Map – Mirage
By the time Mirage arrived, FaZe was revved up and easily cruised to a 5-1 edge on the attacking side with ropz continuing to hit all the right notes. Armed with an abandoned AK-47, Ludvig #Brollan Brolin killed two enemies in the seventh to put his side back in the game. The Swedish team used this to keep FaZe (5-5) on their toes.
At the halfway point of the map, the neck-and-neck competition was still going strong, with FaZe winning a 2vs2 post-plant in the 15th to give them a tenuous one-round cushion going into the side swap.
In order to start the second half, broky tapped down four on the pistol round. FaZe then won four of the subsequent five rounds to get within two rounds of the series point, 13-8. The position of Ninjas in Pyjamas in the game deteriorated further as mobile CT-side setups from FaZe forced the Swedes to continually scan their surroundings. Karrigan decided to put the icing on the cake by shooting Patrick #es3tag Hansen and REZ in the backs to win the map 16-8 and progress to the Copenhagen championship match.
