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The LPL Pro CS:GO ANZ Invitational creeps closer and closer to finals week. With a trip to Auckland, New Zealand and a prize pool of $10,000 on the line, the competition is getting intense. This week all 6 teams once again played to grab those winning points and get one step closer to victory. With last-minute roster change-ups and some close-call upsets, let’s take a look at how Round Four played out..
Game 1
Breakaway were still hunting for their first win of the tournament as they went up against Grayhound, who already had two on the board. Grayhound claimed the pistol round and the second, but it was Breakaway who read a mid play from erkaSt to snatch the next one and halt the early signs of the run. Another round followed as Breakaway quickly sieged A site and collected three AK-47s and a third followed to push Grayhound’s economy into the trash.
The teams traded rounds, but Breakaway was still in the lead 5-3 before some strong setup from Grayhound gave them a fourth. The teams continued to be evenly matched as the rounds bounced back and forwards, no team really gaining an edge. Grayhound had a brief run as they finally reclaimed the lead and forged ahead with their momentum as they came back in the final round of the first half to move to CT with a 9-6 lead.
The pistol round was Grayhound’s again as their experience and confidence shone true, taking the second round as well. Dexter came out with a 4k before erkaSt denied the Kiwi viewers their free Carls Jr as Grayhound now had full control of the game. Leading 12-6, a phenomenal engage on B site from Grayhound looked like it was going to put the nail in the coffin for Breakaway.
They took another but Breakaway took a seventh and then an eighth. However, a man advantage didn’t eventuate in a round win as Grayhound moved to match point. YDNA survived malta’s engage with 5 health to put Breakaway on 9 to keep the comeback hope alive but malta closed it out by getting his revenge on YDNA to give Grayhound the win 16-9.
Game 2
The Chiefs were back in town and they wasted no time jumping out to an early lead against wildcards Ground Zero, taking the pistol round and a second before a 1v1 gave Ground Zero their first round. Chiefs took the third after exploiting Ground Zero’s tendency to rush into fights and lose players too early, as well as a fourth not long after. GZ had a numbers advantage in the 6th round and used to to sneak back a round of their own.
Even as Chiefs had a lead, Ground Zero erased it and equalised it 4-4, before their momentum kicked up into high gear as they claimed another four rounds. In an eerie reversal of the first portion of the game, the Chiefs bounced back to equalize the series 8-8 after taking the first pistol round of the second half.
Ground Zero once again sprinted into the distance but the calm collected play of the Chiefs was all they needed to come back and take the lead 13-12. Some strong teamwork gave the boys in blue two more rounds as they moved to match point. A last gasp from Ground Zero wasn’t enough as the Chiefs took the one and remained in touching distance of Tainted Minds at the top of the table.
Game 3
Tainted Minds were in stellar form, and that showed as their opponent for the week in Legacy Esports failed to halt their aggression early in the game. A pistol round followed by six rounds from Tainted Minds put a win in doubt for Legacy, but that didn’t stop them as they closed out the eighth round to suggest this might be harder than it looks for the tournament leaders to finish off.
Zewsy and ustilo were fragging left, right and centre, with 12 apiece after nine rounds and their counts wouldn’t stop any time soon. In a contest reminiscent of Gimli vs Legolas at the Battle of Helm’s Deep, they were racing neck and neck for the most kills. After Tainted responded with a round after Legacy’s first, the Adelaide boys clutched their second round.
There wasn’t much more to smile about for Legacy for the rest of the first half, with Tainted Minds moving to 12 with Legacy salvaging the last round. Lacore was on fire for the losing team, as he had 21 kills of his own at the changeover, but it was Tainted who again took the pistol round to tighten their grip on the game.
Leading 14-3, the game was all but assured, but the Legacy boys weren’t giving up easily. They went on an absolute tear, taking seven rounds, only punctuated by Tainted Minds moving to match point and finally having their run stopped in their tracks as the tree was cut down. Tainted Minds took the win 16-10, with zewsy edging ustilo 30 kills to 27. TM remain at the top of the table and are clear favourites to take out the Invitational.
Join us every Thursday LIVE on twitch.tv/letsplaylive and SKY SPORT 5 from 8pm NZDT as the LPL PRO CS:GO ANZ Invitational continues!
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