Article:CDL Playoffs 2020 Day Two Recap

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Day two of the CDL Playoffs was a dramatic and memorable affair... for all the wrong reasons!

Let's take a look at what unfolded...

London Royal Ravens 1 - 3 Toronto Ultra
Call of Duty and controversy. The two go hand in hand don't they?

We will, of course, get on to the controversy that surrounded this series - but first - let's start with the opening game. Gun Runner Hardpoint.

A fairly routine 250-158 win for Ultra to kick things off. CleanX and Methodz were their usual disgusting selves with 33 (1.27) and 31 (1.72) kills respectively. The Royal Ravens on the other hand struggled to get a foothold in the game. The slaying power was lacking, too. They all dropped negative KDs and Wuskin finished up with a meager 15 kills.

The Royal Ravens bounced back immediately on Rammaza S&D with a 6-3 win. In the killfeed it was the Zer0 and Classic show, with both men dropping 10 kills for a 2.0 KD. Oh, and Cammy put up a standard 11 kills, two of which were snipes... obviously. It wasn't enough to deter the Royal Ravens, though. They flexed their S&D muscles to tie the series 1-1 with ease.

Game three. Gun Runner Domination. Another game where the Royal Ravens were out-slayed and, ultimately, out=played by Ultra. Zer0 finished up as the only member of the Royal Ravens with a positive KD and a game-leading 26 kills to his name. How crucial would he be in the Hackney Yard Hardpoint... *ahem*

Anyway! The score may have been relatively close at 178-134, but Ultra were so well drilled and composed that victory was never really in any doubt. They stood firm when they needed to and they were capping crucial flags at crucial times. Essentially, they never allowed the Royal Ravens to put together any serious charge. 2-1. Matchpoint to Ultra.

Hackney Yard Hardpoint and here comes the controversy! With the score at 165-141 to Ultra, Zer0 'lagged out' of the game.

Needless to say, this is unacceptable at any level, let alone at the highest level of CoD competition for $4.6 million. Yes, the restart rule in Hardpoint is clear on the fact that if a team is over 150, no restart is possible, but that will be of absolutely no comfort to Zer0 or the Royal Ravens.

There have now been two disconnects in two days, with Kuavo dropping out on day one and being replaced by Dashy for the final game of the series.

What can be done to rectify these situations? Who knows. These issues should have been completely ironed out by this stage. Let's just hope for a smoother run for the rest of the playoffs and Championship Weekend.

Don't hold your breath, though!

With the win Ultra move on to face the Florida Mutineers in the Winners Round. The Royal Ravens, meanwhile, will face off against Paris Legion in the Losers Bracket.

Minnesota RØKKR 1 - 3 New York Subliners
RØKKR without GodRx. Could it be the move of the season or the biggest mistake that RØKKR have made thus far. Well... as you've already seen the score above you probably already know the answer.

That's unfair on Exceed to be honest. He more than stepped up to the plate. In fact, he was arguably the standout performer for RØKKR. That still doesn't detract from the unusual timing of dropping one of your star players. Anyway, I digress!

Game one. Rammaza Hardpoint. RØKKR were on top throughout the opening rotation, but a strong hold at Ruins and Bridge allowed the Subliners to turn the tide.

RØKKR bounced back on Electronic Shop to open up a lead, but the Subliners just wouldn't go down without a fight and they rallied hard to close out a 250-228 victory.

If you're going to hit back there's no better way to do it than with a crushing 6-1 S&D victory.

The RØKKR were all over the Subliners from the get-go. The bloodbath was lead by Assault and Exceed who notched 10 and 8 kills respectively, with outrageous KDs of 5.00 and 8.00. It's worth noting that 6 of Exceed's 8 kills were snipes, too. Disgusting stuff.

St Petrograd Domination was just that... domination by the Subliners. Half way through the first of the game the Subliners just took hold and didn't let go.

Attach, Mack and ZooMaa led the way in the killfeed, dropping 74 kills between them which, incidentally, was just five less than the whole RØKKR squad managed.

Games just don't get much closer than this Hackney Hard Hardpoint. The two teams went back and forth throughout. no one could build a manageable lead and it all came down to the final hill.

Both teams flooded Warehouse knowing a decent hold would be enough to secure a win. In the end it was Attach who went HUGE to contest and crucially clear out Exceed and Asim to hand the hill to the Subliners before standing firm and nailing a five-piece.

Heartbreakingly, RØKKR were only two points away from taking the Subliners to a game five but, it wasn't meant to be. They drop into the Losers Bracket to face OpTic Gaming Los Angeles, while The Subliners secured a matchup with the Chicago Huntsmen.


 * CreditsLine1 = 'Written by Aaron Rook / Twitter - @AaronRook91'
 * ArticleTextShort=CDL Playoffs 2020 Day Two Recap

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 * PublishDate=21st August, 2020
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