Twistzz: FaZe to show ‘real us’ in NAVI rematch

FaZe will rematch Natus Vincere at Dickies Arena in Dallas on Saturday after beating FURIA in the group stage and G2 in the quarterfinals. NAVI defeated FaZe 2-0 in their first meeting at the event.

Russel ‘Twistzz’ Van Dulken said nerves affected FaZe in the opening match against NAVI and that the team is now executing the Counter-Strike they practiced. He described the upcoming match as a chance to display the lineup they have been preparing.

On Dust2, FaZe’s map pick, the team won the pistol round and several late clutches to take the map. Twistzz said FaZe adjusted after being surprised by early pushes through Top Mid and that a 6-6 half gave them a platform to build on.

Mirage went to overtime, where David ‘frozen’ Čerňanský produced key plays that helped close the match. Twistzz praised frozen’s performance and called him one of the game’s top players. He also credited veteran teammates for important openings and round-winning plays.

Twistzz outlined a tactical change that helped on Mirage, saying opponents left Ramp open and FaZe used those openings to gather information and win later rounds. He described the team’s decision-making and communication as closer to what they practiced.

The Dallas crowd had an impact on FaZe. Twistzz said he had not played in front of a North American crowd in three years and called the audience a major motivation. The quarterfinal also marked Neityu’s first big-arena match and featured contributions from jcobbb, whom Twistzz said deserves more stage time.

The rematch at Dickies Arena is scheduled for Saturday. FaZe enters after consecutive upset wins; NAVI returns after their earlier 2-0 victory over FaZe at the event.