NiP send Astralis packing

Ninjas in Pyjamas have progressed to the knockout stages of DreamHack Masters Malmö after edging past Astralis 2-1 (16-5 on Cache, 9-16 on Inferno and 16-12 on Train).

The third match of the day brought together an all-Scandinavian clash as Astralis, who had looked way off the pace against dignitas the day before, battled to preserve their survival in Malmö against Ninjas in Pyjamas.

The series kicked off on Cache, where Astralis, who began on the CT side, came out the brighter of the two teams and picked up a 2-0 lead. The Danish team were then punished for playing too aggressively, allowing NiP to get their first round on the board. That win sparked a massive run from the Swedish lineup as they gave up just two more rounds before the end of the half to sit on a commanding 11-4 lead before the teams switched sides.

NiP piled more misery on their opponents and further grew their lead by taking the first two rounds of the second half. Armed with Desert Eagles and Tec9s, Astralis were able to get their fifth round of the game, but NiP were not going to let their opponents go any further and bagged the next three rounds en route to a 16-5 finish.

NiP survived the Scandinavian derby 

Inferno followed the same pattern as the first map, with NiP hitting back with a buy in the third round after losing the opening two rounds. Nicolai "⁠device⁠" Reedtz, who had missed some easy shots during the first gun rounds, stepped up to the plate and became more confident as the game wore on, powering Astralis to turn a 2-5 deficit into a 10-5 advantage.

The Swedish team came from the break determined to turn the game around and won the pistol round with an A retake thanks to a massive blunder from Finn "⁠karrigan⁠" Andersen, who failed to get a single kill during a flank attempt. NiP continued racking up rounds and eventually reduced the gap to 9-10, but then a quad kill from Peter "⁠dupreeh⁠" Rasmussen during a mid-B split gave Astralis their first round on the Terrorist side. The Danes kept pressing forward and eventually got their 16th round on the board to take the series to a third map.

Astralis go home early 

The decider map was Train, where NiP got off to a great start as they enjoyed a five-round lead on two occasions. However, Astralis were simply dominant during the final stages of the half and took a narrow 8-7 lead before switching to the Terrorist side.

The Danish team enlarged that lead by picking up the first two rounds in the second half, but then NiP were simply far too hot to handle, winning nine of the next 11 rounds to seal a 16-12 victory and an overall 2-1 success. 

DreamHack Masters Malmö 2016Best of 3 Ninjas in PyjamasMatchpage 2 1 14th April 2016 Astralis 16Cache 5 9Inferno 16 16Train 12

Ninjas in Pyjamas	K - D	+/-	ADR	Rating 2.0
Patrik 'f0rest' Lindbergf0rest	63 - 44	+19	83.9	1.26
Christopher 'GeT_RiGhT' AlesundGeT_RiGhT	56 - 45	+11	89.6	1.22
Richard 'Xizt' LandströmXizt	49 - 41	+8	82.3	1.21
Jacob 'pyth' Mourujärvipyth	45 - 46	-1	67.6	1.03
Adam 'friberg' Fribergfriberg	45 - 49	-4	61.8	0.96

Astralis	K - D	+/-	ADR	Rating 2.0
Nicolai 'device' Reedtzdevice	58 - 44	+14	79.6	1.16
René 'cajunb' Borgcajunb	52 - 54	-2	75.1	1.02
Andreas 'Xyp9x' HøjslethXyp9x	44 - 51	-7	76.1	0.93
Peter 'dupreeh' Rasmussendupreeh	36 - 56	-20	67.4	0.80
Finn 'karrigan' Andersenkarrigan	35 - 53	-18	52.0	0.65

Peter 'dupreeh' Rasmussen Age: 23 Team: Astralis Rating 1.0: 1.10 Maps played: 751 KPR: 0.76 DPR: 0.65 Nicolai 'device' Reedtz Age: 20 Team: Astralis Rating 1.0: 1.16 Maps played: 660 KPR: 0.79 DPR: 0.64 Finn 'karrigan' Andersen Age: 26 Team: Astralis Rating 1.0: 0.98 Maps played: 714 KPR: 0.68 DPR: 0.69