Astralis, who started the PGL Major with an 0-2 Day 1 scoreline, have completed a long comeback to qualify for the Legends stage of the PGL Major Stockholm 2021. They join seven other teams from the Challengers stage: Heroic, MOUZ, Virtus.pro, Entropiq, ENCE, FaZe Clan and Copenhagen Flames.
On Day 1 of the PGL Major, Astralis took surprising losses to Copenhagen Flames and Entropiq to put them on the verge of elimination. They had to battle back in three consecutive best-of-three’s — against GODSENT, paiN Gaming and Spirit — to secure their berth as Legends. In all three matches, the Danes didn’t drop a single map. Astralis’ final match against Team Spirit, which propelled them into the Legends stage, was also the final match of the entire Challengers stage.
The team leaned heavily on their in-game leader Lukas “gla1ve” Rossander, who had the highest rating in the server in their match again Spirit, at 1.41. The IGL also dropped 43 kills between both games to help cap off the comeback run. Astralis, who are returning as the last major winners from StarLadder Berlin Major 2019, are looking to reclaim their title. In the Legends stage, they may finally match up against former teammate Nicolai “dev1ce” Reedtz on his new team Ninjas in Pyjamas. Astralis’ PGL Major run continues tomorrow in their best-of-one match against FURIA Esports.
The other two best-of-three’s on Day 4 of the PGL Major were Heroic vs. Movistar Riders and MOUZ vs. BIG. Both MOUZ and Heroic came out on top, extending their tournament life. For the Movistar Riders and BIG, it’s the end of the road as both teams are now eliminated.
Together, the eight Challengers teams will join Ninjas in Pyjamas, FURIA Esports, Natus Vincere, Team Vitality, Team Liquid, G2 Esports, Gambit Esports and Evil Geniuses in the Legends stage — which starts tomorrow, Oct. 30. The 16 teams will battle it out in another Swiss stage, where only eight teams will advance to the Champions stage playoffs that run from Nov. 4-7.
