The series to watch, as many fans would say, proved a great showcase of top-tier Swedish action. Clutches and exciting passages of plays were popping up in abundance as the two teams vied for a chance of catching up to the in-form Natus Vincere.

The day ended up with three wins for SK Gaming, one win for fnatic and one draw.

SK Gaming vs. fnatic - de_tuscan - 17-13 (6:9, 11:4)

SK Gaming opened up their five map encounter with fnatic by sealing a win on de_tuscan. Despite SK Gaming winning the pistol round fnatic hit back hard and stormed to a 6-2 lead, complimented by a string of successive bomb plants to boost up their cash fund.

Fnatic continued to pick away at the SK defences but near the closure of the first half it became more and more diffcult for the fnatic side to pull off a solid attack. 9 rounds on the board as Terrorist saw fnatic head into the second half comfortably, albeit with an eerie look over their shoulders.

Again SK Gaming opened up by taking the pistol round and this time round they refused to let fnatic back in the game. Momentum played a huge factor in the sudden SK onslaught as they prevented fnatic from inflicting their trademark surprise plays and started to put together some rounds.

At 12-10, now to SK Gaming, allen made the best of his 1v2 situation and continued to build upon the momentum his team were thriving off. It proved far too much for the fnatic team who fell 16-10 on a map which many still call "random". The final score was 17-13.



SK Gaming vs. fnatic - de_inferno - 13-17 (2:13, 11:4)

de_inferno was up next for a fnatic side reeling off an unexpected defeat. Touted by many as the "fnatic playground" the team of 2009 immediately set about their routines and stormed ahead 6-0. Threat pulled off a smart 1v2 to keep the SK team in check after their first opportunity at a round but it wasn't enough to completely neutralize the Swedes; they eventually persevered enough to pick up a point.

From thereon however fnatic pushed for a comprehensive first half scoreline led by a frantic dsn who, nearing the switch, was atop the scoreboard at 19-3.

The second half saw a much more resilient SK team jump out of the blocks as they rallied four rounds together before conceding one. Then things started going back and forth - a dire situation for SK Gaming - before walle took a 1v2 to make it 15-7. Another round came in favor of SK Gaming before fnatic planted at the B bombsite and set up to seal the game. Left in a 1v4 situation face tried his utmost to salvage a round but fell one Swede short - namely cArn - of saving the map for SK Gaming



SK Gaming vs. fnatic - de_nuke - 15-15 (10-5, 5:10)

The third map in the series was de_nuke and SK started out very strong. After losing the pistol round, they bought deagles, flashes, and smokes in the second round. Using a very strong tactic they flashed and smoked out fnatic perfectly to move in upper site, they planted, and won the eco round.

From there SK found a weakness in their defense as they kept pressuring upper site, and outside. Round after round the full rushes would work perfectly and they won five rounds in a row to make the score 8-2. With all of these winning rounds fnatic had to save every second round. Fnatic played better defense in the last few rounds and ended the half with a score of 10-5 in favor of SK.

To start the Counter-Terrorist side, Dennis 'walle' Wallenberg won a one versus one situation in the pistol round which was crucial for his team. SK won the opening three rounds, but fnatic came back and took the next three. Fnatic continued to use their opening kills to their advantage, and forced SK to save much like what happened to them the other half. In the last round of the game, SK would need to win the round if they wanted to tie the match. With famas’s at their hands they played a very solid round to get the tie, 15-15.



SK Gaming vs. fnatic - de_train - 20-10 (12:3, 8:7)

Unfortunately I failed to catch de_train but from several reports it seemed SK Gaming certainly had the much better game on a map they are quickly becoming notorious on. At half time with an 8-7 lead SK Gaming - who switched to attack - pressured the fnatic side with aggressive pushes and refused to let even a single round go. 8 successive rounds saw 16-7 as the winning scoreline, although the game ended as 20-10.



SK Gaming vs. fnatic - de_dust2 - 18-12 (6:9, 10:3)

The closing map of the day was de_dust2 and both teams had equal desires to take the win. A victory for fnatic would see them in close contention for the tournament while a win for SK would help drown out their two draws.

Opening up on a slow note the two sides began to find their feet after six or so rounds. SK Gaming took an initial lead after a handful of brilliant moments from Rasmus 'GuX' Ståhl but fnatic hit back and took the lead. The good spell came for fnatic at just the right time when looking at their situation - 5-3 down as T - but it proved, in the long run, a spell that came too late.

On the second half SK Gaming got the much better start, seemingly replicating the spell of good form that fnatic had in the first. GuX was once again showcasing his talents as SK piled on the rounds to quickly hit match point. Although losing a round many would say was a sure-fire win, a rapid B bombsite push wrapped up the game and the series 3-1-1.



Be sure to check back on SK-gaming.com tomorrow as the final day of Arbalet's Best of Four tournament concludes.

Thanks to Justin 'PrimeTime' Loeb for contributing the de_nuke report.

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Picture credit: ProPlay.ru