17.06.20244 min read

YaLLa Compass playoffs and EC: Jonkoping

As previously reported, The MongolZ team advanced to the semifinals of the YaLLa Compass 2024 tournament group stage with 4 wins and 1 loss. This time, we will cover how their journey continued.

In the semifinals, they faced the Astralis team. During the group stage match, The MongolZ had lost on the Inferno map with a score of 8-13, but this time they chose to play on Nuke, Mirage, and Ancient.

On the first map, Nuke, The MongolZ started comfortably from the CT side, switching sides at 8-4 and finishing the second half with a score of 13-7. However, on the next map, Mirage, the Astralis team made a comeback and won 13-6. As a result, both teams won each other’s chosen maps, leading to the final map being played on Ancient.

The final clash between the two teams was truly intense, going into triple overtime. During this time, The MongolZ managed to turn the game around by winning retake rounds in extremely difficult situations such as 2vs4 and 3vs5. As a result, they defeated Astralis with a score of 22-19 and advanced to the grand final of the YaLLa Compass 2024 tournament.

On the other side, FURIA Esports and Ninjas in Pyjamas faced each other, with NIP winning 2-0 to advance to the grand final. For The MongolZ, they had previously faced NIP in the group stage and won with a score of 13-6 on Nuke.

The grand final match was played on three maps: Ancient, Mirage, and Nuke. Although the first map went into overtime, The MongolZ lost with a score of 12-16. However, they won the next map, Mirage, with a score of 13-7, which led to the final map being Nuke. The result of the final map mirrored their group stage match, as they won 13-6, making The MongolZ the champions of the YaLLa Compass 2024 tournament.

By winning the YaLLa Compass 2024 tournament, they not only took home $200,000 in prize money but also improved their global rankings, reaching #6 on the Valve Regional Standings, #11 on the HLTV Ranking, and #12 on the ESL World Ranking. Moreover, with the points they collected on the ESL World Ranking, they secured an invitation to the ESL Pro League S20, which will be held in Malta this coming September.

Their journey continued as they flew straight to Sweden the day after becoming champions, with the ESL Challenger: Jonkoping 2024 tournament awaiting them in the city of Jönköping.

They were placed in a group with Party Astronauts, Team Falcons, and Aurora Gaming. Their first match was against Party Astronauts, whom they defeated on Nuke with a score of 13-3. Their next match was against Aurora Gaming. The winner of this match would qualify as the first team from the group, but The MongolZ lost on Nuke with a score of 10-13.

As a result, they had to compete again for the second qualification spot from the group. Meanwhile, Team Falcons defeated Party Astronauts, eliminating them from the tournament. The match between The MongolZ and Team Falcons was set to be played on three maps: Dust II, Mirage, and Nuke. On Dust II, The MongolZ started on the CT side but possibly due to insufficient preparation, they switched sides at 4-8 and began the game under tough conditions. Although they tried to recover after the side switch, they ultimately lost the map 11-13.

The next map was The MongolZ’s pick. They switched sides at 7-5 from the T side with a slight advantage, but in the second half, they struggled against the opponent’s fast-paced attacks and lost with a score of 9-13. Thus, The MongolZ lost 0:2 and failed to advance from the group stage, ending their run in the tournament.

Their next tournament will be the Esports World Cup 2024, which will begin right after the players’ break. This tournament, with a $1 million prize pool, will be held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

AuthorTemujin Batbayar

Analyst from Ulaanbaatar specializing in CS2. Has competed in MESA tournaments, worked with Esports TV during the ESL Pro League, and reviewed both the PGL Major Antwerp 2022 and IEM Katowice 2024. Author of his own player evaluation metrics and known for accurate predictions. Has interviewed s1mple and ZywOo. In esports since the days of CS 1.3.