Team Nigma stay perfect at ESL One Birmingham EU/CIS

Team Nigma remained undefeated by rallying for a 2-1 win over Team Liquid on Saturday in Group A action in the ESL One Birmingham Online's Europe and Commonwealth of Independent States division. Nigma (6-0) answered a 55-minute loss on the first map to post wins in 23 and 72 minutes over Liquid (3-3). The victory kept Nigma ahead of Team Secret (5-1), who secured a 2-0 victory over Natus Vincere (3-3) in just 47 minutes total. Both Nigma and Secret have clinched upper-bracket playoff spots.

In other Group A matches Saturday, Team Unique (2-4) recorded a 2-1 win over Vikin.gg (3-3), and Family Team (2-4) -- previously known as Aggressive Mode -- posted a sweep of Gambit Esports (0-6). In Group B, VP.Prodigy (5-1) sustained their first loss with a 2-0 setback to Alliance (4-2). Also on Saturday, Ninjas in Pyjamas (4-2) swept OG (1-5), and FlyToMoon (3-3) did the same to Winstrike Team (0-6).

ESL One Birmingham, a $300,000 Dota 2 major, had been scheduled for this week in Birmingham, England before plans were changed due to the coronavirus pandemic. The tournament was separated into four online regional competitions: Europe/Commonwealth of the Independent States, North America/South America, China and Southeast Asia. The $40,000, six-team Southeast Asia event began last week and runs through Sunday. The other three divisions -- Europe/CIS (16 teams, $200,000), the Americas (six teams, $40,000) and China (eight teams, $55,000) -- will conclude June 7.

The Europe/CIS event features two eight-team groups for round-robin play in best-of-three matches. The top two teams in each group advance to the upper bracket of the double-elimination playoffs, and the third- and fourth-place teams earn spots in the lower bracket. The bottom four teams in each group are eliminated. The playoffs are set to start Tuesday. All playoff matches will be best-of-three until the best-of-five final.

On Saturday, Secret posted wins in 28 and 19 minutes, respectively over Na'Vi, while Unique outlasted Vikin.gg with wins in 26 and 63 minutes sandwiched around a default. Alliance made short work of previously undefeated VP.Prodigy, registering wins in 35 and 27 minutes, respectively.

Family Team registered victories in 37 and 29 minutes over Gambit, while NiP took care of OG with wins in 28 and 30 minutes. FlyToMoon finished the day with victories over Winstrike in 34 and 30 minutes.

Gambit, OG and Winstrike have been eliminated from playoff contention, but all others remain alive with one match to play. All 16 teams are will be in action Sunday, with matches scheduled:

--Team Secret vs. Team Nigma --Team Liquid vs. Natus Vincere

--Vikin.gg vs. Family Team --Gambit Esports vs. Team Unique

--OG vs. Alliance --VP.Prodigy vs. Ninjas in Pyjamas

--HellRaisers vs. Winstrike Team --FlyToMoon vs. Cyber Legacy

ESL One Birmingham 2020 - Online: Europe and CIS standings (map W-L in parentheses) Group A

1. Team Nigma, 6-0 (12-4) 2. Team Secret, 5-1 (10-2)

T3. Vikin.gg, 3-3 (8-6) T3. Team Liquid, 3-3 (7-6)

T3. Natus Vincere, 3-3 (6-8) T6. Family Team (formerly Aggressive Mode), 2-4 (6-8)

T6. Team Unique, 2-4 (4-9) 8. Gambit Esports, 0-6 (2-12)

Group B 1. VP.Prodigy, 5-1 (10-4)

T2. Ninjas in Pyjamas, 4-2 (10-5) T2. Alliance, 4-2 (10-5)

T2. Cyber Legacy, 4-2 (10-8) T5. FlyToMoon, 3-3 (8-8)

T5. HellRaisers, 3-3 (6-8) 7. OG, 1-5 (5-11)

8. Winstrike Team, 0-6 (2-12) --Field Level Media

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)