The first round of group play in VALORANT Champions’ Group D has concluded with Fnatic sending Cloud9 Blue to the elimination match against Full Sense after an intense three-match series.
The series started with a close match on Icebox as each team took turns winning multiple rounds. C9 Blue managed to get the bomb down multiple times in the first half, but they fell short in the post-plant. Fnatic did an excellent job at retaking sites and managed to end the first half 7-5, providing a much-needed lead before switching to offense.
C9 started strong in the second half and won the pistol round without having to plant the spike. Round 14 came down to a nail-biting one-vs-one as Boaster attempted to protect the planted Spike. He burned precious time as he tried to prevent C9 Mitch from defusing the Spike, but he ultimately fell short and C9 tied the game.
Fnatic bounced back by winning four straight rounds to make up for the lackluster performance at the beginning of the second half. C9 managed to win rounds 21 and 22, but Fnatic finished the first game 13-11.
Round four came down to Magnum killing C9 Mitch with only seconds to spare and defused the Spike in the nick of time. C9 answered back with a flawless performance in round five, eliminating Fnatic without losing a player. C9 came back and won six straight rounds to win the game, tying the series and forcing both teams to compete on Fracture.
Fnatic dominated the first half on the attack and only dropped four rounds. Boaster even secured a knife kill on Vanity, which was the perfect betrayal that fans loved. C9 didn’t go down without a fight and gave Fnatic a run for their money in the second half. Fnatic won the first three rounds before C9 won two rounds to stop them from running away with the victory. Round 18 went in favor of Fnatic, but C9 proceeded to win the next six rounds and force the game into overtime.
Unfortunately for C9, Fnatic was not ready to throw the lead. The European team won both overtime rounds and sent Fnatic to the elimination round to face FULL SENSE. Fnatic will face Vision Strikers in the winner’s match on Dec. 3 at 2 pm CT. C9 has one more chance to survive in the elimination bracket against FULL SENSE on Dec. 5 at 2 pm CT.
