A dramatic 2-1 victory over G2 has propelled The MongolZ into the 2-0 pool of ESL Pro League Season 21’s second stage. With this hard-fought win, the team now has three opportunities to secure a playoff berth, with the first coming up on Sunday.
G2 appeared to be in full control early on, overturning a rough 1-7 start on Ancient’s defense after capitalizing on a costly decision by their opponents to chase down weapons in round eight. Their aggressive offensive game plan then allowed them to dominate on the T side of Dust2, where they stormed to a 10-2 lead.
A Costly Collapse on Dust2
Despite securing the pistol round on the defensive half and extending their lead to 11-2, G2’s grip on the game began to slip. The MongolZ found their footing with a force-buy victory, setting the stage for a remarkable comeback. A string of overzealous plays from Ilya “m0NESY” Osipov, who repeatedly fell in opening duels against Usukhbayar “910” Banzragch, further opened the door for their resurgence.
Once The MongolZ forced overtime, they seized complete control, shutting G2 out in the extra rounds. Munkhbold “Senzu” Azbayar delivered the final blow with a jaw-dropping triple-noscope, capping off one of the most dramatic turnarounds of the tournament.
After exploiting G2’s weaknesses on Dust2, the Mongolian squad doubled down on their success by targeting Nemanja “huNter-” Kovač and Janusz “Snax” Pogorzelski’s setup on Mirage. An early B-heavy approach gave them an 8-4 advantage at halftime, but G2 clawed their way back after the sides switched. In the end, The MongolZ held strong on their CT side, with Senzu once again stepping up as the key difference-maker.
m0NESY’s Dominant Form Not Enough
Though his eagerness on Dust2 proved costly, m0NESY was a force throughout the series. After a relatively lackluster showing at IEM Katowice, he appears to have returned to peak form just a month later in Sweden.
Despite G2’s setback, the young AWPer has been one of the standout performers of the tournament so far. With an impressive 1.63 rating across five maps, he currently trails only Danil “donk” Kryshkovets on the Stage 2 leaderboard, with the Russian yet to play his second series.
