It’s an all-American battle as paiN Gaming take on Team Liquid in the Playoffs of ESL Pro League Season 17
After avoiding a thousand scares to make it to the Playoffs, last season’s runner up and North America’s only real hope Team Liquid are about to face Brazilian side paiN Gaming. The latter punched well above its supposed weight to make it through with the higher seed, and is one of three South American contenders at this final stage of the tournament. Whether you regularly bet on CSGO or just want to know more about the teams and the matchup, this preview and prediction article will make you happy.
paiN Gaming
The Samba boys bounced back from their initial defeat in Group C to make it through with their heads held high, taking out an admittedly weakened OG as well as Australian outfits Rooster and Grayhound along the way. They’re not exactly expected to win the tournament, but given how miserable some of Liquid’s performances at this event have been, an upset won’t be out of the question — especially if paiN are able to gain some momentum.
Players
Gabriel “NEKIZ” Schenato
- HLTV Rating: 0.98
- Impact Rating: 1.06
- Kill/Assist/Survived/Traded: 70.0%
- Average Damage Round: 74.8
- Kills Per Round: 0.68
Rodrigo “biguzera” Bittencourt
- HLTV Rating: 1.16
- Impact Rating: 1.15
- Kill/Assist/Survived/Traded: 73.2%
- Average Damage Round: 80.5
- Kills Per Round: 0.72
Wesley “hardzao” Lopes
- HLTV Rating: 1.10
- Impact Rating: 1.03
- Kill/Assist/Survived/Traded: 73.4%
- Average Damage Round: 74.4
- Kills Per Round: 0.69
Romeu “zevy” Rocco
- HLTV Rating: 1.17
- Impact Rating: 1.17
- Kill/Assist/Survived/Traded: 72.4%
- Average Damage Round: 76.5
- Kills Per Round: 0.77
Felipe “skullz” Medeiros
- HLTV Rating: 1.09
- Impact Rating: 1.03
- Kill/Assist/Survived/Traded: 72.6%
- Average Damage Round: 75.6
- Kills Per Round: 0.70
Player to Watch
In the land of the rifles, the Big Green bolt-action is king, and we’re going with zevy — an adept user of the said weapon — as the player to watch on paiN.
Team Liquid
It takes some incredible resolve to come back after facing one of the worst defeats in the history of one’s team, but Liquid, despite a few stumbles, have managed to do that and have looked better and better with every passing game. The American team will be feeling a slight sense of Deja Vu as they had a similar Group Stage last year before managing to make their way all the way to the Grand Final. They will certainly be hoping that they can repeat that second feat this time around.
Players
Nick “nitr0” Cannella
- HLTV Rating: 0.99
- Impact Rating: 0.98
- Kill/Assist/Survived/Traded: 71.1%
- Average Damage Round: 70.6
- Kills Per Round: 0.66
Joshua “oSee” Ohm
- HLTV Rating: 1.14
- Impact Rating: 1.12
- Kill/Assist/Survived/Traded: 72.9%
- Average Damage Round: 75.6
- Kills Per Round: 0.73
Keith “NAF” Markovic
- HLTV Rating: 1.09
- Impact Rating: 1.08
- Kill/Assist/Survived/Traded: 73.4%
- Average Damage Round: 81.1
- Kills Per Round: 0.72
Jonathan “EliGE” Jablonowski
- HLTV Rating: 1.08
- Impact Rating: 1.23
- Kill/Assist/Survived/Traded: 71.3%
- Average Damage Round: 83.2
- Kills Per Round: 0.75
Mareks “YEKINDAR” Gaļinskis
- HLTV Rating: 1.14
- Impact Rating: 1.29
- Kill/Assist/Survived/Traded: 68.7%
- Average Damage Round: 82.7
- Kills Per Round: 0.74
Player to Watch
Following his brilliant exploits against Astralis, we can’t take our eyes off of YEKINDAR, and neither should you.
ESL Pro League Season 17 Playoffs: paiN Gaming vs Team Liquid Predictions
We’re going to be a little shifty and say that it’ll go to Liquid, but not without a good attempt by paiN. Liquid to win 2-1.
Maps
Given that both these teams like playing on Anubis, we’re going with the desert map and doubling down with a healthy dose of Mirage. As for the last one, let’s say Nuke.
Score
Map 1: paiN to win with Liquid >12.
Map 2: Liquid to win with paiN <10.
Map 3: Liquid to win with paiN <9.
Top Fragger
Once again, we’ll go with the Russian prodigy YEKINDAR.
Match Links
Keep an eye on ESL’s Twitch or YouTube channels to watch the match, with coverage set to begin at 14:00 ET/13:00 CST/11:00 PT.
Feel free to roam around the site for a lot more CSGO content.
estnn.com
