Day 2 is already a do-or-die stage for two of the participating teams. Mustang Crew and NAVI Junior will face off in an epic elimination game. On the other side of the group, there will be the winner’s match. After convincing victories against their opponents, Movistar Riders and Hard Legion are looking good to secure a spot for the playoffs. If you missed the action for Day 1, be sure to check out our Cyber.Bet Cup Day 1: Results & Recap!
NAVI Junior vs Mustang Crew
Before their matches even began, the two teams were considered as underdogs. However, it was surprising to see that Mustang Crew put up a tough fight against their opponent Hard Legion. They managed to win 12 rounds on Train, whereas NAVI Junior lost both of their maps 16-6. But it will be a new dawn for these two teams. The fact that they’re both from CIS and play a loose style of Counter Strick, we’re in for a big brawl.
However, there is one major problem for the Mustang Crew – the maps. Their strongest maps are some of the best for NAVI Junior. For example, Dust2 is a common first pick; they have played it 10 times and won 50% of the games. The other plausible pick for Mustang Crew could be Vertigo, and this is the 4th most played map for NAVI Junior. They can’t possibly hope to bring out Overpass, a current weak map for the Juniors as that’s their permanent ban. They can try to bring out Inferno or even Mirage into this series, as NAVI Junior have played Inferno only twice and Mirage has just a 29% win-rate.
NAVI Junior had a difficult time against Movistar Riders who, for all intent and purposes, is a long-term functioning roster. Here, they will face an opponent with a fresh roster. They may have struggled against the Spaniards, but we are sure they will come out guns blazing in this game.
Movistar Riders vs Hard Legion
Both teams opened up their start in Cyber.Bet Cup with victories. It was 2-0 on both ends, but Hard Legion had a more significant split. They allowed the roster of Mustang Crew to remain rather competitive on Train, giving them a total of 12 rounds. In response, Hard Legion gave them a spanking on the second half and the second map. But even though the two teams looked strong, Movistar Riders have the advantage in this bo3.
Taking a look at the map pool, both of these two teams play similar maps. Overpass is by far the best map for both and Inferno seems to be their second best. Where’s the advantage for Movistar Riders in this situation? Even though the win-rates are similar, the past 3 months Movistar had to face much tougher opposition in the 33rd Season of MDL. Teams like BIG, Nordavind, Sprout and others. On the other hand, Hard Legion played in various CIS cups and qualifiers with a lower or similar calibre of teams. Such squads are Nemiga, Unique, Syman and others.
The last time these two teams played each other was back in September. Since then the teams have made significant roster changes. Not to mention Hard Legion (at the time DreamEaters) have continued their downwards spiral into the lower level of Counter-Strike. In contrast, a team like Movistar made a valuable addition in the form of Lucas “steel” Lopes, the Brazilian IGL. We expect these two teams to sweat for their victories, but Movistar Riders are the bookie favourites for a reason.
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*Odds are subject to change.
