EPL Season 13 Group C & D: Gambit stronger than ever, Astralis rise up again

With groups A and B already showing that some of the best teams can’t get through easily, all eyes were set on the remaining two groups. Would more great teams tumble and fall?

After seeing Vitality and BIG, both top ten teams, falling short of playoffs already showed that this format is brutal and anybody could lose out. There was a big chance for more good teams to drop before they could actually battle for the win. There would be more relatively new and rising teams to come that could surprise many in the last two groups.

Gambit looks stronger than ever

In group C it was the question if the CIS teams would be able to topple all the Brazilian forces trying to hold them off. Where the top three of old seem to be struggling sometimes, Gambit has been rising to the top and consistently performing well. It wasn’t any different in this group as well with them being the team to destroy the opposition and take the number one seed unbeaten. With them all being best-of-threes already, it’s quite impressive to see such dominance. But then again it also has to be mentioned that Gambit has rocked a solid 84% win rate in the past three months.

The other two contenders to make it out of the group were little to no surprise, with the number one of the world Natus Vincere being in the mix, followed by the strongest Brazilian team of the moment, FURIA. Both of these teams seemed to struggle a bit though with Natus Vincere actually losing out against FURIA and of course Gambit. Will they be able to bounce back during the playoffs or has the dominance of this team come to a halt?

FURIA was able to take that win against Natus Vincere but was unable to take down Cloud9, a team that has been dropped by the organisation due to the ongoing pandemic and disappointing results. Them taking down their fellow Brazilians wasn’t that big of a surprise though, showing once more that FURIA deserves to be called the number one team of the region.

Astralis rises again (but with competition)

Some amazing teams were lined up for group D, with some underdogs eagerly awaiting a chance to take down some of the best. Endpoint did really well as that underdog, taking two wins in this group which unfortunately were on the teams ending lower than them and also missed out on the playoffs. Astralis was a more dominant force again though, losing against Evil Geniuses in the first match but being able to take down the competition from there on out. Are the struggles gone for the Danish line-up who have had a slump recently? Most likely not, as they have to face Gambit in their first match of the playoffs, but they are already sure of at least a quarter final spot.

Team Liquid was nipping at the heels of Astralis, a now almost classical duo of teams who tend to fight it out at the top consistently. Liquid was able to take down most teams with a 2-0 scoreline, yet fell to the same against Astralis. Their rise recently has been quite strong though, showing that the pick-up of Gabriel ‘FalleN’ Toledo has had the desired effect. It would be expected that they would be able to take down G2 Esports in their first match in the playoffs, but will they?

In recent times you can’t go without a CIS team going through in a group of course and that was no different in group C, Virtus Pro was the last team to make it out. Whilst losing against Astralis and Liquid, they were able to take down all the other teams in the group, making them seem shaky despite their fourth position in the world rankings.

With all the teams now already having played five best-of-threes, there will be enough research material which could be used to gain an edge in the playoffs. Gambit has been showing they are strong recently , especially in playoff situations. They might be considered one of the title favourites, of course having a chance for a shortcut to the semi-finals which would give them even more time to prepare and read in to their opponents.

Also read:

Do you think one of the teams of these groups will be able to take the trophy? Join the discussion on social media or Discord!

You can also help improve our website by submitting direct feedback!

Image Credit: Gambit Esports
*The listed articles are provided through affiliate links. A purchase after clicking through them supports us at esports.com as we will receive a small commission without additional cost to you.