Favorites sent packing in ESL Pro League Season 23 Quarter-Finals

ESL Pro League Season 23 has been blown wide open at the Quarter-Finals stage. A long day of action has seen the two big tournament favorites, MOUZ and Spirit, eliminated at the earliest Playoff opportunity. It’s anyone’s to win – here’s how the action played out across four matches today.

NAVI clear out The MongolZ in two

A limp showing from The MongolZ was nowhere near enough to overcome a tip-top NAVI in the first ESL Pro League Season 23 Quarter-Final, with B1ad3’s teams coming up 2:0 winners to kick things off.

NAVI‘s pick of Ancient was up first, and The MongolZ actually managed to find a strong start to the series. They looked confident on a 7:5 CT side, with 910 leading the way for his team. He couldn’t take that same hot form into the second half, and a strong showing from makazze and w0nderful was enough for NAVI to claim a tight 13:11 win.

The MongolZ’s pick of Mirage couldn’t have started any worse for the team. They instantly collapsed against the wall of makazze, who put up a 17:4 CT side as NAVI steamed ahead with a commanding 10:2 lead. They swiftly finished the game 13:4, condemning The MongolZ to a Quarter-Finals finish at ESL Pro League.

Aurora take momentum-based series over Legacy

Compared to the previous series, Aurora vs. Legacy was something of a barn-burner. Turkey vs. Brazil – national Counter-Strike is back. On this occasion, it was Aurora who came out on top, having too much to offer Legacy in a 2:1 series defined by long periods of momentum.

Legacy enjoyed a dream start to Aurora’s pick of Dust2, picking up the first four rounds with ease. They would be the only four rounds they’d win on the map, losing the next 13 consecutive as Aurora fought their way into the game. It’s a rare sight to see XANTARES at the bottom of the scoreboard, but he was rarely needed as the other four players took over the server for Aurora. This momentum was key, and history would almost repeat itself on map two.

Aurora started off Overpass with a six-round haul of their own, and looked set to take a quick 2:0. Legacy, led by latto and n1ssim dominating the scoreboards, ensured that wasn’t the case by taking 12 straight rounds of their own. They didn’t quite cap it off with all 13, eventually finishing it off 13:8 to tie up the series in Stockholm.

While the Inferno decider started off a little more back-and-forth, when Aurora got going, they simply didn’t stop. Of the last 13 rounds, Aurora were able to take 11 of them en route to a 13:6 victory. This time, Wicadia and MAJ3R led the way with joint 1.68 ratings, an unstoppable force when the momentum swung their way.

FUT announce themselves with statement win over MOUZ

FUT are officially here. They’re not just trying to compete in the Playoffs of events – they’re here to win them. A top-eight berth would have been a great achievement for the young lineup, and a matchup against MOUZ felt like a step too far at this stage in their development. But a 2:1 win has shocked the Counter-Strike world, and shaken up the ESL Pro League Season 23 Playoffs bracket as they head to the Semi-Finals.

A Herculean solo effort from Jimpphat on Dust2 meant that FUT needed all 24 rounds to defend their map pick to open up the series. 13:11 was the final scoreline, with Krabeni and lauNX on the other side of the server ensuring MOUZ would require a reverse sweep to stay alive in a tournament they looked to be favorites in.

MOUZ have won Overpass 100% of the time in the last three months, with five previous wins in that time period. They can make that tally six, a limp T side costing FUT in a 13:10 loss. Once again it was Jimpphat coming to the rescue for MOUZ, dragging them over the line with some impactful rounds. They tied up the series, and FUT would require a Mirage decider if they were going to upset the odds at ESL Pro League.

FUT set up what should have been a dominant win on the third map. Following the break, they raced to a 12:3 lead, and finishing Mirage should have been a formality. But the experience of MOUZ started to shine through, fighting back round by round to pull it back to 12:11 before FUT finally found the correct answers. A brave effort, but FUT had established an insurmountable lead. Overall, though, it’s an embarrassing result for MOUZ, who will feel that this was a must-win event given the level of competition. To fall at the same hurdle, regardless of competition, will lead to some serious soul-searching for this roster.

Astralis stun Spirit to show new levels

It truly is a new era for Astralis. Semi-Finals secured, beating the other favorites to win ESL Pro League Season 23, Spirit, in arguably the most convincing win of the day. 2:0, clean, and frankly, not even close.

Astralis were firing on all cylinders right from the off here, taking a 10:2 lead on Spirit‘s Dust2 pick. Few could quite believe what they were seeing, least of all phzy, who played like a man possessed to carry his team through the map. Spirit did manage to pull back a few rounds to make it look competitive, but Astralis found the answer at 13:6. Disbelief all around.

The dominance was not restricted to Dust2, either. Ancient was equally as one-sided, with Astralis rapidly finding a 12:4 lead. Once again, Spirit started to pull it back, but the damage was well and truly done at this point. The newly-international Astralis eventually closed it out 13:7, and Spirit were sent packing.

“Bad day at the office” doesn’t quite cover it for Spirit. Fundamentally, they were off across the board, and there were many problems beyond just donk not looking like his usual self. Like MOUZ, they were expected to go and win this event, so to not even come close is a monumental failure. But for Astralis, this is a glimpse of their massive potential. For the first time in many years, things are finally looking up for the legendary Danish organization.