After two days of enthralling matchups, six of the best CS:GO teams competing in the BLAST Premier Fall Finals 2022 have entered the tournament's playoffs stage. These six teams will now compete in a single-elimination bracket to make their way to the Grand Finals and earn their share of a $425,000 prize pool.
On Day 3 of the BLAST Premier Fall Final, the Swedish powerhouse, Ninjas in Pyjamas, will take on the CIS region's most experienced roster, Natus Vincere (NAVI) in a best-of-three matchup. The winners of this encounter will proceed to the semi-finals of the tournament, where they will be matched against FaZe Clan.
NIP vs NAVI: Who will win this Quarter-finals matchup of CS:GO BLAST Premier Fall Finals 2022
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Predictions
Ninjas in Pyjamas is one of Sweden's leading CS:GO rosters. The team, however, has been through several changes in recent months. NIP benched Plopski, exempted the in-game leader (IGL) role from hampus, and acquired Aleksib from G2 to take on the mantle of the IGL. They also witnessed the departure of dev1ce, one of CS:GO's all-time greats, who spent over 11 months on the team's bench.
While some of these changes have been for the better, Ninjas in Pyjamas is yet to reflect the quality of their performance with results. However, with that being said, players like REZ and Brollan have been incredible for the team this year and have helped them edge through several complicated scenarios.
In comparison to NIP, Natus Vincere has a more stable team composition. They also have a recent signing in the form of sdy, who has seemingly found his place on the team and has adjusted to their playstyle rather quickly. NAVI has enjoyed a remarkable CS:GO season, with respectable results in all of their recent S-tier tournaments.
NAVI has one of the greatest players in CS:GO history, s1mple, who was also the recipient of the Player of the Decade award at the recent Majors. They also have mechanically gifted players like b1t and Perfecto, whose skills have helped the team convert several unwinnable rounds in their favor.
Natus Vincere appears to have a fair advantage over Ninjas in Pyjamas ahead of this quarter-finals matchup and is expected to win the series and qualify for the semis. However, with the match being a high-stakes environment with two competent CS:GO teams, fans can expect anything to happen.
Head-to-head
The current core members of NAVI and NIP have played against each other on a total of five different occasions so far. Out of the five best-of-three series played between the two sides, NAVI has won three, claiming wins on 8 out of the 13 maps they've played. Their most recent encounter was in the ESL Pro League Season 16, when NIP collected a 2-1 victory over NAVI.
Recent results
Both NIP and NAVI competed in the recent IEM Rio Major 2022. NIP was one of the first teams to exit the Legends Stage of the tournament, finishing in 15-16th place. NAVI, on the other hand, fought their way to the quarter-finals and were eventually defeated by FURIA, claiming a 5-8th spot finish.
Ninjas in Pyjamas was matched up against Heroic in the opening match of the tournament, losing to the Danish side by a 2-1 scoreline. They then achieved a 2-0 victory over OG to proceed to the tournament's playoffs.
NAVI kicked off their BLAST Premier Fall Finals campaign with a 2-0 victory over Fluxo. They faced Team Liquid in the Group Stage Upper Finals, losing to the North American side by a 2-1 scoreline after a close encounter.
Potential lineups
Ninjas in Pyjamas
- Fredrik "REZ" Sterner
- Hampus "hampus" Poser
- Patrick "es3tag" Hansen
- Ludvig "Brollan" Brolin
- Aleksi "Aleksib" Virolainen (IGL)
- Daniel "djL" Narancic (Coach)
NAVI
- Oleksandr "s1mple" Kostyliev
- Denis "electroNic" Sharipov (IGL)
- Ilya "Perfecto" Zalutskiy
- Valerii "b1t" Vakhovskyi
- Viktor "sdy" Orudzhev
- Andrii "B1ad3" Horodenskyi (Coach)
When and where to watch
CS:GO fans can view the playoffs stage of the BLAST Premier Fall Finals 2022 live by tuning into BLASTPremier's official Twitch and YouTube channels. Ninjas in Pyjamas will take on Natus Vincere in a best-of-three series on November 25, 2022, at 10 am PT/ 7 pm CET/11:30 pm IST.
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