Intel Extreme Masters Sydney 2017: Day One Recap

Yesterday, the Intel Extreme Masters Sydney 2017 started, and after the first day, we already have a clear idea of who might be fighting for the title. Astralis and SK Gaming have managed to go through their matches without any problems and they will continue to be the biggest favorites for winning the title at this event.

North vs. OpTic

The Day One of IEM Sydney 2017 started with the match between North and OpTic Gaming. Since the first stage of the tournament is played in the series of the best-of-one, there wasn’t room for mistakes in the matches. North managed to hold their own for a long time, and eventually, they took this match into the overtime.

The first overtime did not solve anything, and the matches went to the second overtime. The same thing happened once again. Only at the end of the third overtime, North was able to claim the victory by a very close margin of 25:23.

ViCi vs. SK Gaming

The second match of the day was the match between SK Gaming and ViCi Gaming. Once again SK Gaming proved that they are currently in the best three CS:GO teams in the world. They did not allow ViCi Gaming a lot of space to maneuver during the match, and at the end SK Gaming managed to win with the score 16:5.

Astralis vs. Chiefs

Astralis played their match against Chiefs eSports Club, and they displayed even bigger dominance as they claimed the victory with the score 16:5. After the day one of the IEM Sydney 2017, it seems that SK Gaming and Astralis will be the two teams that will be fighting for the title.

Renegades vs. FaZe

The fourth match of the day featured FaZe Clan going against Renegades. FaZe Clan also displayed big dominance as they managed to defeat Renegades with 16:4. Besides SK Gaming and Astralis, FaZe Clan might be the biggest favorite for winning the title.

That said, the first day of the competition has indicated they could face certain problems in the upcoming matches. Soon after the end of this match the second round of the Day One has started.

Round 2

The first game of the second round was the game between OpTic Gaming and ViCi Gaming. For both teams, this was the last opportunity to advance to the next stage of the competition. OpTic Gaming displayed very good defense play, and with that, they managed to neutralize all the attacks from the Chinese team. In the end, it was OpTic Gaming that claimed the win with the score 16:8.

The most interesting match of the Day One was the clash between SK Gaming and North, in which North had the advantage at the half time. However, SK Gaming managed to come back in the second half and claim a win in the most interesting and the closest match of the first day.

However, that was not the end of the program of Day One. Chiefs and Renegades also played their match of the second round. In that match, Chiefs did not allow many opportunities for Renegades. The crucial part was the first half that Chiefs won with the score 15:0. In the second half, Renegades were able to come back a bit, but it was too little too late, and Chiefs won with the score 16:5.

The last match of the Day One of IEM Sydney 2017 was played between Astralis and FaZe Clan. Astralis used the fact that this stage of the competition is played as the best-of-one and surprised FaZe Clan with the aggressive play. FaZe Clan was not able to do much in both half times, and in the end, Astralis won with the 16:7.

As Day Two is coming upon us, the matches are getting more and more interesting. We will be looking forward to see what happens next at this tournament, and it will be interesting to see who will emerge as the best CS:GO team at the end of this event.