NIP best Heroic to clinch BLAST Fall Final spot

Ninjas in Pyjamas defeated Heroic in a three-map series, starting out on Inferno 16-14 after almost dropping a 14-8 lead before Heroic fought back on their map pick of Mirage. The decider was Overpass, where Ninjas in Pyjamas put together an impressive offensive side, setting up a 16-7 win and a spot at BLAST Fall Final.

Lackluster terrorist sides were a regular occurrence for Ninjas in Pyjamas up to this point in the tournament, but they showed up when needed most. They won 11 rounds on the deciding map’s offensive side, looking like a completely different team compared to their earlier Overpass showings.

Heroic will now have to go through the notoriously ruthless Showdown to earn a spot at the BLAST Fall Final, which will take place on their home soil.

Heroic began Inferno with a successful retake of the B site on the pistol round, but their advantage didn’t last long, with Ninjas in Pyjamas immediately striking back in the next round. The Swedes built a 5-1 lead on the back of their stronger economic position, with several attacks on the A site proving unstoppable for Heroic. After the opening few rounds, however, the Danish CT side stabilized and started their recovery, dropping just two more rounds in the remainder of the first half, which ended 8-7 in their favor.

The second pistol round went in favor of Ninjas in Pyjamas, which meant the Ninjas took back the lead by a slight margin, with a fantastic retake of the A site by Nicolas “⁠Plopski⁠” Gonzalez Zamora and Patrick “⁠es3tag⁠” Hansen in a 2v3 situation keeping up their streak. Seven rounds in a row meant they had a 14-8 lead, with the Danish offensive side looking dejected. A half-buy round win for Heroic started their comeback attempt, tying up the score at 14-14 with a six-round streak of their own. The momentum looked to be in their favor, but Ninjas in Pyjamas won the final two rounds and closed out the game 16-14, with every member of the Swedish team delivering on an individual level throughout the map.

NIP almost dropped Inferno after a 14-8 lead

Next up was Mirage, where a triple-kill by Fredrik “⁠REZ⁠” Sterner won his team the pistol round, which they converted into an early lead. It didn’t last long though, with Heroic quickly equalizing the score at 3-3. Another swing round followed, as es3tag‘s 1v3 clutch put his team back into the lead and enabled them to run away to a five-round lead, before Heroic‘s late charge made the score an almost even 8-7.

The Danes made an electric start to the second half, winning a retake on the B site with a two-man disadvantage. Complete domination followed, with Heroic winning all but one round as Ninjas in Pyjamas‘s T-side woes continued, with the series moving on to Overpass.

Ninjas in Pyjamas recently lost Overpass to the North Americans of Evil Geniuses and Liquid after struggling on the offensive side of the map. This time around they put together an impressive offensive half, building on the momentum from a pistol round win to lead 11-4 at the half.

A good start by Heroic was a necessity if the Danes were to have any chance of coming back into the game, with Jakob “⁠jabbi⁠” Nygaard delivering an ace in the pistol round. They won just the three rounds, however, with Ninjas in Pyjamas getting success as soon as their economy allowed it. A five-round stretch followed, giving the Swedes a comfortable win on the deciding map and a spot at the Fall Finals.