Day 16 of the Skyesports Valorant League 2021 witnessed Punjab Pinnacles’ first victory in the series against Bengaluru Crushers.
Before this Valorant series, Punjab Pinnacles have been on the receiving end of four consecutive series losses. Among them, the closest they got to a victory was in their last series against Mumbai Aces, where they took two games to overtime.
Bengaluru Crushers, on the other hand, currently have a record of two losses and two clean sweeps to their name.
Punjab have been struggling since the start of the tournament. Finally, they have broken the silence with a 2-1 series victory, securing their first points of the tournament.
The three maps chosen by the teams through the map veto process were:
- Icebox
- Haven
- Ascent
Skyesports Valorant League day 16 match recap
Map 1: Icebox
The first match of the series was played on the Valorant map of Icebox. Punjab Pinnacles started the first half on the defender’s side, winning the first pistol round. The first half looked pretty neck-and-neck, as both teams traded leads. However, Bengaluru Crushers quickly pulled away with a significant lead and ended the first half with a 3-9 scoreline.
The second half kicked off with yet another Punjab pistol round victory. Not only did they secure the pistol round, but they also won four consecutive rounds to take the score to 7-9. After giving away the 17th round to Bengaluru, Punjab once again won three consecutive rounds to tie the score.
But the comeback was not enough, as SkRossi’s absolute banger of a performance led Bengaluru Crushers to a 13-10 victory in the first game.
Map 2: Haven
Punjab started off strong winning four consecutive rounds in the match on Haven. However, that joy was short-lived as Bengaluru made a comeback and sealed the first half in their favor with a 7-5 scoreline.
Punjab got the upper hand in the second half and won the match, giving away only three rounds to Bengaluru Crushers.
Map 3: Ascent
The final match of the series took place on Ascent. The Valorant roster of Punjab Pinnacles put everything on the line for the all-important 2 points.
Punjab went on to win two consecutive rounds and secured a 2-0 scoreline. However, after a long and hard battle, Bengaluru managed to take away the first half in their favor. Further cementing the lead, they secured Valorant's pistol round in the second half to secure a 5-8 scoreline.
Bengaluru looked dominant as they further extended this lead to 10-12 and went on to match point. Punjab Pinnacles though, made a comeback and tied the match to take it to overtime.
They once again pulled off the impossible and took the game to double overtime. And with that, they finally won a series and secured their first points of this Valorant tournament.
Points table after day 16 matches
Even though this victory did not change Punjab Pinnacles' position, it was a massive mental victory for their side.