NaVi and Aurora Gaming are both 2-1 in the PGL Astana group stage, and they’re set for a round-four matchup to determine who heads to the playoffs.
The first round of PGL Astana had some surprising upsets, with Aurora Gaming being the victim of one of them. Things have mostly settled down since then, including Aurora moving toward advancement.
NaVi and Aurora Gaming were generally expected to advance to the playoffs. That may still happen, but one of them will have to face a do-or-die round five match. So who is moving forward and who has to roll the dice?
WINNER TO PLAYOFFS! TheMongolz vs NAVI – HIGHLIGHTS – PGL Astana 2025 | CS2
Natus Vincere and Aurora Gaming are set for an advancement match in the PGL Astana group stage on May 13, 2025. Both teams have a 2-1 record in the group stage thus far. The winner will take a spot in the playoffs while the loser will have one more chance to advance to the playoffs in the fifth round of the group stage.
NaVi has been solid throughout 2025 and has looked solid throughout the PGL Astana group stage. The team kicked things off with a pair of solid victories over M80 and BIG. It failed to advance after taking a 2-0 loss to The MongolZ, but both maps during that series ended with a 13-11 score.
The NaVi roster remains stable, led by IGL Aleksi “Aleksib” Virolainen:
NaVi owes much of its success in 2025 to Mirage, where it has a 13-5 record. It’s also doing well on Inferno but has a close-to-even record on Dust 2, Ancient, and Inferno. NaVi has played quite infrequently on Anubis, Nuke, and Train, though.
Aurora Gaming took a surprise loss to BIG in its first match in PGL Astana, but has gotten itself in order since then. That said, the team’s matches against HOTU and Ninjas in Pyjamas have been worryingly competitive 2-1 wins.
The Aurora Gaming roster is currently made up of the Turkish Eternal Fire team:
This team, whether it’s as Aurora Gaming or Eternal Fire, has enjoyed success based on its strength on Anubis and Nuke. The team has typically banned Ancient while (more or less) going even on other maps.
NaVi played against Eternal Fire’s roster, now competing for Aurora Gaming, five times in CS2 history. Both rosters have largely remained untouched during that time. NaVi has won four of those matches, but the most recent was at BLAST Open Spring 2025, which Eternal Fire won 2-0.
NaVi is a solid favorite against Aurora Gaming, with the lines standing at 1.57 against 2.37. The exact line varies depending on the sportsbook. Though Eternal Fire got the better of their last match, sportsbooks are clearly dismissive of that result.
NiP vs Aurora – HIGHLIGHTS – PGL Astana 2025 | CS2
NaVi will likely be able to take the win over Aurora Gaming. These teams are roughly even on most rankings, but Aurora Gaming doesn’t look like it’s in peak condition for this tournament. Though should be a tough match regardless, though.
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