The semi-finals are ready to begin tomorrow and Power Rangers will be trying to emulate their previous final appearance with victory over Virtus Pro, while Ninjas in Pyjamas take on their Swedish rivals Alliance.
The third and final Invitational Qualifier for the Esportal LAN finals has reached the second stage after the first four teams were eliminated. It was a story of shut out victories with London Conspiracy, 4 Anchors,Vega Squadron and Meepwn'd all eliminated in two games. The final four teams have all appeared in previous versions of the qualifier, but for Virtus Pro and Ninjas in Pyjamas this is the first time they've made it to the second round. Virtus Pro had fallen in the first round in both the first and second Invitationals, but had enough to end the curse and defeat 4 Anchors to set up their first semi-final match.
Virtus Pro move on to meet Power Rangers in the semi-finals, another team that has appeared in all three of the Invitational Qualifiers. The Belarusian team narrowly missed out on a place in the LAN finals in the previous Invitational where they lost 3-2 to ASUS.Polar and victory over Virtus Pro will secure them a second final appearance. However on the other side of the bracket it will be a battle of the Swedes with inform Ninjas in Pyjamas taking on Alliance. With the LAN finals being held in Sweden this will be a must win game for both teams. While Ninjas in Pyjamas have only appeared in the previous Invitational where they fell to Power Rangers in the opening round, Alliance have reached the semi-final stage in all three qualifiers - losing to ASUS.Polar both times.
The first semi-final match will begin at 17:00 CET on March 4th with Power Rangers and Virtus Pro in action, while Ninjas in Pyjamas and Alliance prepare to battle later that day at 20:30 CET.