Fnatic will face Astralis in a group stage match at ESL Pro League Season 20 for Counter-Strike 2, scheduled for September 10 at 14:30 EEST. The match will be played in a best-of-3 format.
Fnatic has not participated in major S-tier tournaments recently, focusing on unsuccessful qualifiers. In their last five matches, they won two and lost three, with victories against OG and Cloud9 but losses to Team 3DMAX, HEROIC, and ECSTATIC.
Astralis has been active in major tournaments with an average rating of 5.5 over the past month. They finished 9th-12th at IEM Cologne 2024 and have a similar recent record, winning two and losing three matches against Ninjas in Pyjamas, 9z Team, Team Vitality, Natus Vincere, and G2 Esports. Their experience against tougher opponents could give them an edge.
Map Pool
Fnatic frequently bans Nuke (38 times) and prefers Ancient (62% win rate), Vertigo (75%), and Inferno (67%). Astralis consistently bans Anubis (26 times) and favours Ancient (67% win rate), Nuke (50%), Inferno (70%), and Vertigo (67%).
Expect Fnatic to ban Nuke and pick Ancient, while Astralis will likely ban Anubis and choose Inferno. Vertigo might be the deciding map.
ESL Pro League Season 20 runs from September 3 to 22 in Malta, with a $750,000 prize pool.