VCT EMEA: Team Liquid ends Fnatic’s 21 series win streak to become First-ever 2 times VCT champions

Team Liquid won the game with a score of 3-1.

VCT EMEA: Team Liquid ends Fnatic’s 21 series win streak to become First-ever 2 times VCT champions

The VCT EMEA Leagues 2023 have come to a conclusion after multiple teams engaged in a hard contest of abilities and intellect. The three teams, Team Liquid, Fnatic, and FUT eSports has advanced to the VCT Masters Tokyo 2023. Throughout this week of constant matches, the playoffs are finally over. Team Liquid has claimed the title by winning against World Champions, Fnatic. Also, this is the first loss of Fnatic in the whole VCT 2023 season.

The match was between the last year’s 5th runner-up Fnatic against the 8th runner-up, Team Liquid. They had faced each other during the Upper Brackets finals too, which resulted in Fnatic’s win. The match was a best out of 5 and after a lengthy but intense & fun match, Team Liquid won. Team Liquid showed their fans their skills and swept through Fnatic’s strategies to claim victory against them.

YouTube video

Fnatic won the first map, and fans thought it was over for Team Liquid, similar to the match in Upper Finals. But the other three maps to follow totally averted their expectations. The team’s precise gameplay led them to be crowned as the winners of the VCT EMEA Leagues 2023 grand finale winners. The game was spectacular and intense simultaneously and kept fans on the edge of their seats.

Related: VCT Masters 2023: Evil Geniuses defies all odds and books their ticket for Tokyo

Team Liquid’s victory against Fnatic

VCT EMEA: Team Liquid vs Fnatic
(credits: VCT EMEA Leagues Official YouTube)

From what seemed to be Fnatic’s golden season, fans were sure Fnatic would be the winner. Fnatics had been on a perfect streak, defeating every other team in the series. Moreover, Fnatic had already defeated Team Liquid during the upper brackets of the VCT EMEA Leagues. Fnatic fans were sure that the team would defeat TL again. However, something exactly opposite happened. Team Liquid not only beat Fnatic in the finals but also landed a consecutive 3 maps victory. Also, TL put an end to the 21-win streak of Fnatic. Fans were actually impressed by the team’s spectacular performance.

Also, this match was a best of 5. The match went up to the fourth map, where TL registered their victory. These 5 maps were:

  • Lotus: Picked by Fnatic
  • Ascent: Picked by Team Liquid
  • Haven: Picked by Fnatic
  • Fracture: Picked by Team Liquid
  • Bind: Tiebreaker Map

The match was actually very nerve-wracking and intense. Fnatic fans were sure that the team would continue their win streak since they had already defeated TL before in the Playoffs. But TL proved all these expectations wrong. Not only did they win the match, but they won with a good score. Throughout the match, both teams played splendidly and utilized all the skills in their arsenal. The match was indeed a spectacle to watch.

First Map: Lotus (Fnatic’s Pick)

VCT EMEA: Team Liquid vs Fnatic
(credits: VCT EMEA Leagues Official YouTube)

Almost every map where really close calls for both sides. Fnatic started off as the attackers, while Team Liquid got the defending side. During the first map, Fnatic ended the first half with a lead of 8-4. However, their lead didn’t last long, as Liquid quickly caught on to them in the second half. After a while, the game was at stagnant, with both sides gaining an alternate win every round. The game would’ve gone to overtime, but at the last moment, Derke got the win for Fnatic and the map was closed with Fnatic winning with a score of 13-11.

Second Map: Ascent (Team Liquid’s Pick)

VCT EMEA: Team Liquid vs Fnatic
(credits: VCT EMEA Leagues Official YouTube)

After the first map win, fans saw Fnatic’s good form and were sure that the 21-win streak would continue. But Team Liquid’s performance on the map was out of this world. Team Liquid started off as the attackers, while Fnatic got the defending side. Just as in the last map, however, this time, TL brought the score up to 8-4 in the first half. But they lost their lead, and the game tied at 12-12 and went into overtime. During the overtime, TL won both rounds, thus winning the map. Liquid’s player Sayf dropped the most frags on this map, while Fnatic’s Leo was ahead of him in numbers.

Third Map: Haven (Fnatic’s Pick)

VCT EMEA: Team Liquid vs Fnatic
(credits: VCT EMEA Leagues Official YouTube)

Haven was kind of one-sided, where Team Liquid actually proved their strength. Fnatic only managed to win 4 rounds on the attackers’ side during the first half. Team Liquid maintained the lead during the second half too, and closed the map with a score of 13-6. This made the overall game score 2-1, with Team Liquid in the lead. Fans were really impressed with TL’s immersive performance. Sayf’s duelist didn’t shine much on this map, but it was still a nice addition to the game.

Fourth Map: Fracture (Team Liquid’s Pick)

VCT EMEA: Team Liquid vs Fnatic
(credits: VCT EMEA Leagues Official YouTube)

This was the game-deciding match. Fnatic tried their best but couldn’t beat Team Liquid, as the map pick was not theirs. This map was way more intense than all the other maps. Both teams were raging each other out and winning rounds after rounds. Jamppi from Liquid dropped the most frags helping Team Liquid win the match and eventually the Grand Finals too.

Fans and Pro players/teams’ reaction to Team Liquid’s win was congratulating:

Fnatic vs Team Liquid match was actually quite delightful and kept everyone on the edge of their seats. Every map made it unsure which team would come out on top. However, TL’s win has not just won them the price of $250,000 and the trophy of the VCT EMEA League 2023 but they also ended Fnatic’s most impressive win streak in the history of Valorant Champions Tour. This grand final was actually a memorable match for both the teams and we’ll see more of them in the upcoming VCT Masters Tokyo 2023.

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