Ninjas in Pyjamas (NIP) secured a vital win in the Perfect World Shanghai Major Europe RMR B’s 2-2 pool, defeating 9 Pandas in a tense and closely contested series. The victory was heavily influenced by an outstanding performance from their AWPer, Artem “r1nkle” Moroz, whose heroics proved pivotal.
Gareth “MisteM” Ries and his squad must now wait for the outcomes of the remaining 2-2 matchups. Wins by Astralis and Spirit could allow Ninjas in Pyjamas to skip the seventh-place decider entirely. Conversely, if Passion UA or Sashi triumph, NIP would be guaranteed a place in the extra match to secure a Major berth.
The series opened on NIP’s chosen map, Ancient, where 9 Pandas quickly established dominance, building an intimidating 7-1 lead. Despite the setback, r1nkle delivered a phenomenal second half on the CT side, achieving a staggering 2.22 rating. His efforts enabled NIP to reclaim the momentum and close out their map pick with a 13-10 victory.
The second map, Dust2, selected by 9 Pandas, followed a similar pattern. Aleksandr “shalfey” Marenov and his team surged to a commanding 10-2 lead. Once again, r1nkle stepped up on the offensive side, attempting to engineer another comeback for NIP. However, a costly anti-eco round loss handed 9 Pandas the edge they needed to secure Dust2 with an identical 13-10 scoreline.
The decisive map, Mirage, saw NIP finally gain footing in the opening half, thanks to key contributions from stand-in Jacob “jocab” Nerheden. With the score tied 8-8 after a competitive start, a critical 4k from Fredrik “REZ” Sterner broke the deadlock and allowed the Ninjas to pull ahead. NIP maintained their momentum and ultimately clinched the series with a 13-8 win on Mirage, sealing the 2-1 result.
