Evil Geniuses vs 9z at CS: GO IEM Rio Major 2022 - Predictions, head-to-head, livestream details, and more

The IEM Rio Major 2022 is undoubtedly one of CS: GO's most anticipated events to take the audience by storm. Since being canceled due to Covid-19 in 2020, fans have been waiting for the Major for almost two years now. The tournament will begin with its Challenger Stage, where 16 CS: GO teams will compete to climb to the Legends Stage.

Only a total of eight CS: GO teams will make it to the next stage of the Major. On Day 2 of the IEM Rio Major, fans will get the chance to witness Evil Geniuses take on 9z in the Challengers Stage. The winners of the match will be one step closer to securing their spot in the Legends Stage.

Every match of the IEM Rio Major Challengers and the Legends Stage will be held in front of a live audience in Rio De Janerio. The Champions Stage will be live at Jeunesse Arena, while the Grand Finals will be held on November 13.

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Evil Geniuses vs 9z in CS: GO - Who will win the opening match of Day 2 of IEM Rio Major 2022 Challengers Stage?

Predictions

Currently, both Evil Geniuses and 9z look equally balanced in today's match. With that being said, their recent results declare that they may not be in the best of form at the moment. Their past performances, though, have shown fans their true potential to claim victory when it matters.

Evil Geniuses has been looking a little shaky since IEM Road to Rio 2022: American RMR in recent CS: GO history. With losses against Liquid in the IEM via a 0:2 score and Fluxo with a 1:2 result at the Blast Premier: Fall American Showdown 2022, EG may need to pick up pace to win their first match on Day 2.

In the past few months, EG's roster has gone through a series of changes, including acquiring NeaLaN from K23 to bench RUSH.

On the other hand, recent CS: GO results for 9z have been a tad better. The team did well against the likes of Mibr in the FiReLEAGUE 2022: Global Finals. However, they also lost against Spirit in the same tournament. But 9z has shown excellent performances in the IEM Road to Rio against ATK and Imperial, despite losing to Evil Geniuses 1:2.

Much like EG, 9z has also made a few changes to the roster, acquiring nqz. In conclusion, it is a bit difficult to predict who might win the match as both teams have shown a lot of potential. One might agree that Evil Geniuses have a little bit of an advantage as they already have the experience of defeating 9z before.

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Head-to-head

Eg vs 9z Head to head (Image via hltv.org)

In the last few months, Evil Geniuses has outplayed 9z three times. Evil Geniuses have come out victorious against 9z in most of their matches, according to results on hltv.org.

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Recent results

Evil Geniuses proved their worth in the IEM Road to Rio 2022 by securing second place in the tournament, just below Team Liquid. For the BLAST Premiere, EG took a hit by not performing so well and only managing fifth to eight place in the tournament among teams like LOS + oNe, Complexity Gaming and VERTEX Esports Club.

However, their performances in the IEM Road to Rio have been exceptional against teams like FURIA, 9z and Nouns. They have also performed to the expectations of fans during the ESL Pro League Season 16.

9z has also proven their worth by securing a spot right below Evil Geniuses in the IEM Road to Rio 2022. Securing third position in the tournament was not an easy job. They have been top contenders in the tournament after defeating the likes of Imperial and 00 Nation.

Even in the FiReLEAGUE, 9z has come off as an exceptional team where they secured third to fourth, sharing $7,000.

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Potential lineups

Evil Geniuses

• Vincent "Brehze" Cayonte
• Tsvetelin "CeRq" Dimitrov
• Timothy "autimatic" Ta
• Jadan "HexT " Postma
• Sanjar " neaLaN" İshakov
• Daniel "Vorborg" Vorborg (Coach)

9z

• Franco "dgt" Garcia
• Maximiliano "max" Gonzalez
• David " dav1deus" Tapia Maldonado
• Lucas "nqz" Soares
• Nicolás "buda" Kramer
• Rafael "zakk" Fernandes (Coach)

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Where to watch

CS: GO fans can tune into the 2022 Rio Major live on ESL CS: GO's official Twitch handle.

Evil Geniuses will take on 9z on November 1, at 3 pm CET/ 7:30 pm IST / 7 am PDT on Day 2 of the IEM Rio Major 2022 Challengers Stage.