Astralis Defeats Virtus Pro in Clash for Cash Showmatch
Last night, in ELEAGUE’s Atlanta studio, Clash for Cash, a rematch of the ELEAGUE Major grand final from January, took place. The result was not surprising, as Astralis emerged victorious over Virtus Pro in three maps.
After the match, Anders Blume, an in-game caster, described the rivalry between Astralis and Virtus Pro as one of the most storied in Counter-Strike and stated that this match added another epic chapter to their history.
Both Virtus Pro and Astralis selected their respective map picks as expected—Nuke and Overpass—but Train (VP) and Inferno (Astralis) vetoes resulted in Mirage becoming the deciding match. These later vetoes worked in Astralis’ favor.
Nuke: The Poles Dominate
Virtus Pro secured an early 6-0 lead by executing a clean B site play in the first pistol round. Astralis managed to fight back and win three defensive rounds, breaking their cold streak. The teams traded buy rounds until the first half of Nuke ended with Virtus Pro leading 9-6.
In the second pistol round, Astralis rushed A site successfully, but Virtus Pro made an impressive two-on-five retake and won the round with a 4K from Jarosław “pashaBiceps” Jarząbkowski. Virtus Pro dominated the Counter-Terrorist half with effective rotations and individual retakes. Despite Astralis’ poor performance as Terrorists, they managed to win the map 16-7.
Overpass: Danish Mind Games
In the second map of the series, Virtus Pro won the first pistol round with a strong defense in the middle. However, Astralis displayed their psychological strength with nine consecutive cerebral round wins as Terrorists. They executed tight time strategies and used tactical fakes to confuse Virtus Pro. In the first half, VP only managed to win one buy round, leaving the score at 11-4 in favor of Astralis.
Markus “Kjaerbye” Kjærbye had an outstanding second pistol round with four headshot frags on Virtus Pro’s Terrorist A push. Astralis completely shut out VP in the second half of Overpass with strong defenses in the bathroom area. Kjaerbye led the team with an average damage per round of 132.3 and a top frag count of 24 kills. Astralis won Overpass with a score of 16-4.
Mirage: The $250,000 Decider
With the series tied at one map each, Virtus Pro quickly planted the bomb on the A site in the pistol round of Mirage. However, Astralis managed to defuse the bomb with little time left in a three-on-three retake. Throughout the first half, Virtus Pro faced technical mistakes and communication errors that hindered their performance. Although Janusz “Snax” Pogorzelski’s ace helped VP narrow the gap, Astralis finished the first half with a dominant 12-3 lead.
Astralis’ split A execute in the second pistol round eliminated any chances of Virtus Pro making a comeback, ultimately ending Mirage. The Danes showcased no mercy as they executed explosive strategies to secure the win, defeating Virtus Pro 16-3. Kjaerbye and Xyp9x had impressive average damage per round stats of 127.1 and 104.0, respectively.
Astralis’ captain, Lukas “gla1ve” Rossander, expressed his excitement and satisfaction with the team’s performance in this victory. Astralis took home a substantial $250,000 check, while Virtus Pro left Atlanta without earning any prize money from ELEAGUE’s Clash for Cash.
This match showcased the talent and skill of Astralis, solidifying their position as one of the best teams in Counter-Strike.
esports, gaming, Clash for Cash, Astralis, Virtus Pro, ELEAGUE, Counter-Strike, showmatch