Image: Perfect World Esports
G2 survived a close call versus HEROIC, but Team Vitality fell in a massive upset by FaZe Clan.
Only four teams remain standing in the Counter-Strike 2 (CS2) Perfect World Shanghai Major 2024, with the conclusion of the second day of the Playoffs on Friday (December 13). 
G2 Esports and 
FaZe Clan advanced to the semifinals of the Shanghai Major after they defeated 
HEROIC and 
Team Vitality in two thrilling quarterfinal showdowns.
Here's how all the action in day two of the Shanghai Major Playoffs went down:
G2, Vitality round out Shanghai Major Top 4
2-1
HEROICG2 were arguably the biggest favourites to claim victory in the Shanghai Major after winning the BLAST Premier World Final 2024. They then put on a solid 3-1 showing in the European RMR B to advance to the Elimination Stage, where they went 3-1 again to qualify for the Playoffs. Meanwhile, HEROIC also put up a 3-1 performance in the European RMR B to move to the Elimination Stage. There, they had to go through all five rounds to make it to the Playoffs, capping off their run with a dramatic victory over defending Major champions Natus Vincere (NAVI).
HEROIC looked like they could pull off another upset over a Major title contender as they easily won the opening map of the series in Ancient despite a valiant 22 frags on 12 deaths from G2 superstar 
Nikola “NiKo” Kovač.
Game two at Nuke saw HEROIC have another strong start by going up 7-5 after the first half on the CT side. Determined not to let his team get swept, NiKo recorded an incredible six 3Ks in the second half to fuel an 8-2 run from G2, then claim the 13-9 win in Nuke and force the series to a decider. NiKo ended the map with 26 kills on 13 deaths while G2's other superstar, 
Ilya “m0NESY” Osipov, also showed out with 21 frags on 12 deaths.
With everything on the line in Mirage, 
Maruo “malbsMd~” Samayoa and 
Janusz “Snax” Pogorzelski stepped up for G2 as HEROIC were able to prevent NiKo and m0NESY from having their usual superstar impact. The first half of the decider ended with both teams in a 6-6 deadlock, although HEROIC were quick to take control by winning the first three rounds of the second half as the CT side.
MalbsMD then scored a crucial 4K in round 16 to fuel a three-round streak for G2, only for Abdulkhalik “degster” Gasanov to clutch a one-versus-two in round 20 as HEROIC answered with back-to-back rounds and took a 11-9 lead. Snax then pulled off his own one-versus-two clutch in round 21 followed by a 3K in round 23 to put G2 on series point at 12-11, but a determined HEROIC squad were able to win round 24 to force overtime.
While HEROIC won the first round of overtime, malbsMD willed G2 past the finish line with an insane one-versus-three clutch in round 26 amid a four-round streak to close out the series. Nemanja “huNter” Kovač notably sealed the deal with a 4K in round 29.
NiKo spearheaded G2's march to the semifinals with an incredible 65 frags and 21 assists on 47 deaths throughout the series. M0NESY pitched in with 56 kills and 16 assists on a series-best 42 deaths while malbsMD added 55 kills and four assists on 46 deaths. Meanwhile, degster and 
René “TeSeS” Madsen put up a heroic 49 kills apiece on 44 and 52 deaths, respectively, in the loss.
2-1
Team VitalityThe second series of the day saw another Major title favourite in Vitality take on FaZe, who entered this matchup as heavy underdogs despite its experienced roster led by legendary in-game leader Finn “karrigan” Andersen.
With leading world #1 player candidate 
Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut leading the way, Vitality cruised through the European RMR A and the Elimination Stage without even dropping a single map to advance to the Shanghai Major Playoffs. In stark contrast, FaZe went 3-1 in the European RMR A and had to survive five rounds of the Elimination Stage to just barely make it to the Playoffs.
Vitality came out swinging to start the series at Nuke, winning the first eight rounds consecutively with 
Lotan “Spinx” Giladi and Shahar “flameZ” Shushan recording back-to-back 4Ks in rounds 7 and 8. FaZe would show signs of life by closing out the first half with four-straight rounds, but Vitality still went on to secure the comfortable 13-6 opening win. 
Robin “ropz” Kool notably put up a valiant 22 frags on 15 deaths in the loss.
Game two at Mirage saw Vitality start strong once again, winning four of the first five rounds as the T side behind an Ace from flameZ in round two. However, FaZe finally woke up and scored six-straight rounds that gave them a 7-5 lead by halftime. FaZe extended their lead to 9-5 before Vitality answered with three-straight rounds – though ZywOo was notably not having his usual impact. FaZe then went on a four-round streak to secure the 13-8 win in Mirage and force the series to a decider.
The decider at Anubis had a similar start to Mirage, with Vitality winning the first three rounds as the T side before FaZe racked up another incredible streak of seven rounds to head into the second half with a commanding 8-4 lead. Smelling blood in the water, FaZe continued rolling behind ropz to extend their lead to 11-4. ZywOo wouldn't go down without a fight, however, as he scored a 3K in round 17 to fuel a three-round rally for Vitality. Despite ZywOo's best efforts, FaZe simply could not be denied as they methodically won the next two rounds to claim the 13-6 win in Anubis and secure the 2-1 reverse sweep.
Ropz put up a spectacular performance to lead FaZe to the semifinals, finishing the series with 61 total frags and nine assists on 35 deaths. Meanwhile, ZywOo bow out with a valiant 48 kills and seven assists on a series-best 34 deaths.
With the day's results, G2 and Vitality have guaranteed themselves at least a 3rd-4th place finish and $80,000 in winnings. Meanwhile, HEROIC and FaZe exit the Shanghai Major with a respectable 5th-8th place finish and $45,000 in consolation. The Shanghai Major Playoffs on Saturday (December 14) will have the following matchups:
- Team Spirit vs MOUZ
- G2 Esports vs FaZe Clan
The CS2 Perfect World Shanghai Major is the second-ever Major Championship for CS2, and will feature 24 of the best teams from all across the globe gunning for the lion's share of a $1.25 million prize pool, as well as the prestigious right to be called CS2 Major champions. The tournament is split into three distinct stages: the Opening Stage from November 30 to December 3, the Elimination Stage from December 5 to 8, and the Playoff Stage from December 12 to 15.
For everything you need to know about the CS2 Perfect World Shanghai Major, check here.
