FaZe, Fnatic rally at DreamHack Masters Spring - Europe

FaZe Clan and Fnatic each rallied for dramatic 2-1 victories on Tuesday as Group C play continued at the DreamHack Masters Spring - Europe event. FaZe came back to down Team Spirit (1-1) and improve to 2-0, while Fnatic (1-1) bagged their first win by rallying past GODSENT (0-2). FaZe have clinched a playoff spot, although the top spot in the group is still up for grabs.

The DreamHack Masters Jonkoping, a $250,000 Counter-Strike: Global Offensive event, originally was scheduled to be contested with 16 teams on June 9-14 in Jonkoping, Sweden. However, the coronavirus pandemic forced the event to move to an online format featuring regional competitions for Europe, North America, Asia and Oceania. The DreamHack Masters Spring - Europe bracket, with 16 teams split into four groups competing for $160,000, runs through June 14. Group A round-robin play concluded Thursday and Group B wrapped up Sunday. Group C play continues through Saturday, with Group D beginning on Thursday and finishing on Saturday.

The playoffs are June 8-14, with all matches best-of-three except for the best-of-five grand final (where the upper-bracket winner will carry a 1-0 advantage into the match). The champion receives $54,000 from the $160,000 prize pool, plus 400 Pro Tour points. FaZe started very slowly against Spirit, dropping the first five rounds en route to a 16-7 loss on Train and then falling behind 14-9 on Dust II. But FaZe righted the ship just in time, winning six straight rounds to force overtime and ultimately win the second map 19-15.

FaZe also had to rally in the third map, on Nuke, this time coming from 14-10 down to win five straight rounds and force overtime, where they prevailed 19-17. None of FaZe's players finished with a positive kill-death differential, with rifler Nikola "NiKo" Kovac ranking best at minus-3. AWPer Artem "iDISBALANCE" Egorov led Spirit with a plus-20 kill-death differential.

Fnatic actually started hot against GODSENT, winning the first five rounds on Nuke, but they lost 10 of the next 13. A late push allowed Fnatic to force overtime, but GODSENT survived 19-15. On the second map, Inferno, Fnatic overcame an 11-9 deficit to win 16-14 and level the series. They then dominated the final map, cruising to a 16-3 victory on Train. Rifler Freddy "KRIMZ" Johansson led the way with a plus-20 kill-death differential.

Group C continues with FaZe battling Fnatic on Wednesday, and then wraps up Saturday with GODSENT vs. Spirit. All four teams are still alive for a playoff berth. DreamHack Masters Spring Europe standings, with win-loss record and point differential:

Group A 1. G2 Esports, 2-1, +14

2. Astralis, 2-1, +13 3. Heroic, 1-2, +12

4. North, 1-2, -39 Group B

1. BIG, 3-0, +27 2. Complexity Gaming, 2-1, +18

3. MAD Lions, 1-2, +1 4. mousesports, 0-3, -46

Group C 1. FaZe Clan, 2-0, +8

2. Team Spirit, 1-1, +18 3. Fnatic, 1-1, -4

4. GODSENT, 0-2, -22 Group D

ENCE, Natus Vincere, Ninjas in Pyjamas, Team Vitality 

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