CS:GO StarLadder Berlin Major 2019 entered the New Champions Stage yesterday. The 8 best teams in the world all gathered here in the main stage in the Mercedes-Benz Arena in Berlin. After a long hard-fought battle in the New Legends Stage, 8 teams from 6 regions have come to battle it out to become the new Champions.

However, as we all know, playing on the main stage of a CS:GO Major surely has its toll on everyone. While it gives hype to players, it also puts a large pressure on the overdogs like Vitality and ENCE. This is where most upsets happen, as CS:GO is one of the most competitive Esports. Whoever has a better mentality will fare better.

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In the big stage, whoever manages to keep their cool will stand a much higher chance of winning

AVANGAR displayed a whole new face rather than what they did in the New Legends Stage. From a crushing defeat to mousesports in the opening match, AVANGAR fought on to win Team Liquid in overtime and defeat G2 in a Bo3. The CIS squad carried on the hype and won Vitality right on the French’s map pick, Mirage 16-9. They dropped Inferno 11-16 and won handily on Dust 2 16-10.

Another underdog run?

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Jame contributed great to the match against Vitality

The CIS squad has improved significantly since the addition of the Major MVP Dauren 'AdreN' Kystaubayev. He was the Major Champion in the PGL Major Krakow 2017 with Gambit. The squad quickly dropped off in performance later following the departure of the IGL Danylo "Zeus" Teslenko to Natus Vincere. However, AdreN is still all fired up and he looked for great teammates in FaZe Clan earlier this year. It didn't take long before he left the European star-studded lineup. Now he is doing much better in his own Kazakhstan team.

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AdreN is looking to make another underdog story with AVANGAR

CS:GO StarLadder Berlin Major 2019 will continue today with another two matches: NRG vs. Natus Vincere and Team Liquid vs. Astralis. The match between the current #1 Team Liquid and the former emperor Astralis is considered an early grand final. Whoever wins this has a high chance of winning the whole Major. Tune in for more of the highest level of Counter-Strike being played in Berlin, Germany.