Apeks upset Liquid to secure Semis at BLAST.tv Major Paris
Liquid started off their Challengers stage run with a rough loss to Apeks in the best-of-ones. They went down 0-2 before having their awakening. They made the flawless run back from 0-2 to the Legends stage and then went on to qualify for the Playoffs with just a loss to Heroic going against them. Meanwhile, Apeks managed to qualify thanks to a surprising win over the Ninjas In Pyjamas but still came into the quarter-finals as an underdog.
The match started off on Ancient, with Apeks picking up the pistol round conversion to get a 3-0 lead on the T side. While Liquid managed to pick one gun round up, they could not build a streak of rounds as STYKO and jkaem found some incredible gaps in the TL defence to take Apeks to 7. A brilliant round from YEKINDAR saw the Latvian getting the opener and closing out with a 1v2 clutch. But the Apeks onslaught continued, giving them an 11-4 lead at halftime, with STYKO at the head of the pack.
The NA squad started their own attack on the right foot with a 3-round streak, with the Liquid stars looking confident. But kyxsan's double in round 19 gave Apeks their entry into the second half. Despite TL picking up a couple of rounds, Apeks managed to survive the economic damage as Jkaem put up massive impact frags on the defence, quickly hitting matchpoint at 15-9. YEKINDAR walked through the flames, losing 90hp in the process but netting TL a 10th round on the A site. It was the veterans for Apeks in jkaem and STYKO to close out the final round, taking a surprising lead in the series 1-0.
YEKINDAR's triple started the Overpass T side for Team Liquid, but control got handed over to Apeks as they won the force-buys to force TL to save as kyxsan and Co. went up 6-1. Round after round, kyxsan kept putting pressure on Liquid, taking Apeks up to 10 with a 21-8 KD. It took every ounce of individual brilliance from YEKINDAR and NAF to give Liquid a 3rd, as the youngster was 7-0 in entry duels. It was all in vain for Liquid as Apeks put together another dominant 11-4 half.
Another pistol round for Liquid, and as Apeks took an eco, Liquid were able to go back to back finally. Liquid looked in control as oSee's AWP came out in the gun round, but nawwk was able to clutch it out, getting a free upgrade into the big green. It was the veteran and the rookie as ELiGE and oSee combined to fend off Apeks in back-to-back rounds, taking Liquid up to 12-9. jkaem's entry frags forced TL to save in round 24, but the CT side was strong, reaching 11. Back-to-back post-plant wins for Apeks took the team to matchpoint, and with just pistols in their hands, Liquid was eliminated from the Major as Apeks secured the semi-finals.
The result comes as a massive shock as Apeks now head into a match against Vitality in the semis. Meanwhile Liquid will once again face heartbreak at a major, losing a series everyone would've expected them to win.
LiquidApeks| Liquid |
K - D | +/- | ADR | KAST | Rating 2.0 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Mareks 'YEKINDAR' Gaļinskis |
41 - 39 | +2 | 83.1 | 71.7% | 1.19 |
 Keith 'NAF' Markovic |
35 - 36 | -1 | 75.3 | 75.5% | 1.05 |
 Jonathan 'EliGE' Jablonowski |
32 - 36 | -4 | 68.2 | 73.6% | 1.00 |
| Nick 'nitr0' Cannella |
27 - 38 | -11 | 63.7 | 71.7% | 0.86 |
| Josh 'oSee' Ohm |
31 - 33 | -2 | 53.7 | 71.7% | 0.84 |
| Apeks |
K - D | +/- | ADR | KAST | Rating 2.0 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Damjan 'kyxsan' Stoilkovski |
49 - 34 | +15 | 88.4 | 81.1% | 1.34 |
 Tim 'nawwk' Jonasson |
39 - 24 | +15 | 67.8 | 81.1% | 1.30 |
 Martin 'STYKO' Styk |
37 - 36 | +1 | 88.3 | 67.9% | 1.02 |
 Joakim 'jkaem' Myrbostad |
33 - 36 | -3 | 68.6 | 67.9% | 1.01 |
 Justinas 'jL' Lekavicius |
23 - 37 | -14 | 57.7 | 75.5% | 0.87 |
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