Astralis has successfully qualified for the playoff bracket at Stake Pulse Beat III, demonstrating immediate chemistry with their newly formed international lineup. The roster, which officially welcomed Kamil siuhy Szkaradek and Nikita cmtry Samolotov just yesterday, dominated Group C at the Swedish LAN event with an unblemished 2-0 record.
Their opening match against Sashi proved competitive on Nuke, where Astralis found themselves trailing 4-8 at halftime and later faced match point at 8-12. However, they mounted an impressive comeback, forcing overtime and ultimately securing the map 16-13. Mirage saw a more commanding performance, with siuhy leading the charge through an 11-kill first half that helped establish a 9-3 advantage. Despite a five-round comeback attempt from Sashi, Astralis closed out the map 13-9.
The encounter with HOTU demanded all three maps. After dropping Dust2 by a 13-6 scoreline, Astralis bounced back on Ancient, overcoming an early deficit to force overtime and claim a 16-14 victory. The deciding map on Nuke showcased vintage form from the squad, as they built a massive 10-2 halftime lead on their CT side and swiftly closed out the match 13-2.
Astralis now joins Ninjas in Pyjamas, Sangal, Liquid, and 100 Thieves in the single-elimination playoffs. Their quarterfinal match is scheduled for October 16th at 10:00 AM, where they will face the runner-up from Group D.
