The ELEAGUE Major kicked 2017 off with a bang. Here’s five reasons to stay tuned to CS:GO for the rest of the year…
The first Major to feature the Swiss format instead of the popular group stage format produced numerous upsets, surprises and great Counter-Strike.
Kjaerbye can perform under pressure
There’s was never any doubting that Kjaerbye had talent, that was always clear to see, but when it came to high pressure games he would struggle to have an impact.
Now, on the other hand, nerves don’t affect him whatsoever. Not even during intense clutch situations.
Whether it’s because of the input of Astralis’ sports psychologist, or Gla1ve’s confidence-building impact, he’s now one of the calmest players on the roster.
It was Kjaerbye’s heroics in the final of the Major that secured Astralis the victory and in return he was awarded the MVP medal.
The future is definitely bright for the young Dane. He has the raw talent necessary to become the world’s best player.
2017 could be Astralis’ year
Despite having a great end to 2016, Astralis will want to put the majority of the year behind them. And there’s no better way than winning the first Major of 2017.
Since Gla1ve joined, they’ve all upped their individual performances and their teamwork has drastically improved as well.
In the space of a month they rocketed up to 1st from 15th on HLTV’s world ranking, thanks to three back-to-back finals.
Their best result by far was winning the ELEAGUE Major, where they managed to pull of an incredible comeback on the third map, Train.
With this, they’ve cemented their status as the world’s best team and overcome the semi-final curse which saw them fail to progress to finals seven times last year.
No doubt we’ll being seeing Astralis in many more finals and lifting even more trophies throughout the year.
Gambit’s hard work has paid off
Gambit’s ambition has always been to become a top 10 team and after their inspiring performance at the Major some would say they’ve made it.
The most important thing for Gambit was to retain their Legends status and they’ve managed it in a convincing style – matching their previous best-ever Major finish of quarter finalists.
With victories over North, Godsent and FaZe, they’ve proved they can go toe-to-toe with some of the best – something the pre-Zeus Gambit would’ve struggled with.
Preparation is key and Zeus had some great counter-strats, proving why he’s one of the best IGLs out there.
Another of Gambit’s bright spots was AdreN, who had an incredible tournament and looked like he was capable of clutching even the toughest situations.
All in all, Gambit can hold their heads high after the ELEAGUE Major, and with some extra time to build chemistry they’ll be able to pose a threat to any tier one team.
They call them the Plow for a reason
In the run up to the Major, Virtus.Pro looked like they were having all sorts of trouble, both online and at LAN.
It all started with failing to qualify for the ESL Pro League Season 4 and the ECS Season 2 Finals. They followed that up with a disappointing showing at WESG, just weeks before the Major began.
Fans were starting to doubt their ability to take the title in Atlanta.
But in true VP style, they saved their biggest performance for the biggest occasion. Only Astralis were able to halt the plow.
Despite finishing eighth, Na’Vi look sharp
Na’Vi have struggled to find a system that allows all their star players to shine, but at the Major they looked as if they had found the solution.
flamie and GuardiaN provided solid foundations that allowed the likes of S1mple to play with the aggression we’re used to seeing from him.
During the Swiss stage they convincingly beat mousesports, EnVyuS and SK – only dropping a total of 12 round in 3 maps, the least of any team at the Major.
If it wasn’t for meeting eventual winners Astralis in the quarter finals, they would’ve had a strong chance to progress to the tournament’s latter stages.
With a little more refinement, Na’Vi’s new setup has the potential to deliver silverware.
