ESL One: New York 2016 - Virtus.Pro to Grand Final

Virtus.Pro have secured a victory over SK Gaming in a best-of-three series, their next stop is facing the CIS mix of Natus Vincere in the Grand Final of ESL One: New York 2016.

The second finalist of ESL One: New York 2016 has been decided, as Virtus.Pro have overpowered SK Gaming in a grindy best-of-three series that saw two maps with overtimes, one of which was a triple. V.P will now face Natus Vincere to determine which team will be taking the trophy and the Champions' title alongside $50,000 in prize money.

ESL One: New York 2016 - Semi-final #2

Virtus.Pro vs. SK Gaming

Winner: Virtus.Pro

Maps: de_Mirage, de_Overpass, de_Nuke - 8:7, 7:8, 1:4 (16:19); 8:7, 7:8, 3:3, 3:3, 4:0 (25:21); 9:6, 7:1 (16:7)

MVP: Jarosław "pashaBiceps" Jarząbkowski

The second semi-final commenced on de_Mirage, where we saw overtime that concluded with the Brazilian roster overpowering the Poles. SK secure the first pistol round of the series on their CT side, allowing for an early lead over their opponent. Both teams reciprocated rounds, leading to a slight disadvantage for SK at half time at 7:8. The Brazilians made sure not to let their chance slip, as they mirrored their opponents' score and close off the second half at 8:7, leading to overtime. In said overtime we saw the Brazilians push Virtus.Pro overboard, finalising the map at 19:16.

Second we saw de_Overpass, a map that went into a triple overtime, a true testimony to the resilience and experience of the Polish roster. It all started off much like the previous map, with both teams playing exceptionally well. Neither team gave up a significant lead at any given point, leading to another 8:7 stalemate in favour of the Poles on the CT side. SK Gaming obliged and mirrored the former score, pushing the match into overtime. The first overtime produced a 3:3 score, with both teams balanced out. The second was much like the first, 3:3. The final, third overtime saw propulsion from Virtus.Pro, where the team secured four rounds in a row, along with the second map.

The last map of the best-of-three was de_Nuke. Neither team felt particularly solid on the map, creating an essence of uncertainty regarding the outcome. The first half saw a solid performance from the offence of Virtus.Pro, where they team managed to successfully raid bombsites and land plants. The first half concluded at a 9:6 lead for the Poles. The second, deciding half of the semi-final was tremendous. Virtus.Pro absolutely dominated, commanding the game to their desire. It surfaced that SK Gaming hadn't particularly prepared for the map, which lead to a disappointing 7:1 second half, subsequently a 16:7 win for Virtus.Pro. The Poles proceed to the Grand Finals of ESL One: New York 2016 to face Natus Vincere.