By defeating Vitality in the grand finals, Natus Vincere took the crown in ESL Pro League Season 14 for CS:GO esports. NaVi also completed the third Intel Grand Slam, winning $1 million in the process.
This Grand Slam, which spanned over two years, was the biggest one since its inception. This environment allowed Natus Vincere, who only gathered momentum halfway through, to reach its highest stage: the grand finals of the ESL Pro League Season 14, one of the most important events of the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive season.
Natus Vincere vs Vitality
Dust 2
Natus Vincere and Vitality gave fans some thrills with their five-map CS:GO esports battle. NaVi players started strong with a solid performance on T-Side Dust 2. Once they got to play counter-terrorists, an impressive pistol round was the turnaround leading to victory (16-10).
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Inferno
On Vitality’s pick of Inferno, the long-awaited battle between s1mple and ZywOo finally happened. But the French team almost got caught up, securing a 9-6 lead at half-time. Vitality’s defense was hard to pick apart, winning six rounds out of six, taking Inferno in ESL Pro League Season 14.
Nuke
On Nuke, NaVi instantly took over points of interest and controlled the map. S1mple’s triple-kill on the gun round particularly helped Natus Vincere establish themselves mentally. Vitality tried its earnest for a comeback but the Ukrainian organization sealed the deal at 16-11.
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Overpass
Overpass was a different story with ZywOo, Kyojin, and especially shox, giving NaVi something to chew on. With a respectable 12-3 lead at halftime, a fifth-round was already in the works. When the French team secured the first full-buy round, everyone knew Mirage would be the decider.
Mirage
And a decider it certainly was, as this was the closest map of this match. NaVi’s solid 5 to 1 start led to a 10-5 halftime. Although S1mple missing a bomb plant by a close margin was an important moment, giving Vitality time to regroup. They slowly grinded their way back to a 14 to 15 deficit, only to lose to the play of the game: a triple kill by s1mple.
ESL Pro League Season 14
Winning the ESL Pro League Season 14 and the Intel Grand Slam Season 3, Natus Vincere goes home with a total prize of over $1 million. Vitality, who managed to push this game to its limits, got awarded $80 thousand.
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The MVP of the tournament went to s1mple, whose performances in clutch situations were a huge part of Natus Vincere’s win.
Written by Charles Fuster
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