The upper-bracket semifinal of the OfUnited21 League between G2 Ares (G2 Esports’ academy) and fish123, led by Owen smooya Butterfield, was meant to be an important step forward for the young “Samurai” roster. But instead of a purely competitive battle, the series turned into controversy when G2 Ares’ star AWPer, Klimentii “k1m” Krivosheev, was wrongfully banned by the AkrosAC anticheat system immediately after the first map.
Strong start for G2 Ares
The match kicked off on Inferno, G2 Ares’ pick, where the academy squad delivered their best performance. They dominated from round one, leaving fish123 no chance — 13–3. Aggressive pushes onto A site, flawless teamwork between Nidoriaa and hitori, and K1m’s consistent shots (12–9, 1.26 rating) laid the groundwork for what looked like a comfortable series.
But everything changed in an instant: after the map ended, AkrosAC falsely flagged and banned K1m’s account for “suspicious activity.” Later, Akros’ support confirmed that the issue was caused by a Windows API error on their end — but only seven hours later.
Forced substitution and turning point in the series
With their AWPer locked out, G2 Ares had to bring in Nestor “LETN1” Tanic, the team’s head coach, as an emergency stand-in. LETN1 is an experienced tactician, but no longer an active Tier-1 level player, and the impact was immediate.
On Ancient, G2 still held on (10–13), but the sharpness was gone: they lost crucial 4v3 rounds, and fish123 gradually seized control. On the decider, Dust2, there was no fight left — 0–13. LETN1 ended the match 10–28 with the lowest rating on the server (0.55), underlining the severity of the setback.
G2 Esports reaction and demand for a rematch
G2 academy manager Peca didn’t hold back in his post-match statement:
Having a match decided by a failed anticheat is unacceptable. We deal with cheaters daily in online tournaments and matchmaking, but banning young talents during one of their rare chances to prove themselves is a disgrace.
He confirmed that G2 has formally requested a rematch and expects tournament organizers to respond swiftly. G2 emphasized that academy events like these are crucial for nurturing talent — and incidents like this can derail careers before they even begin.
Community Reaction: Support, Skepticism, and Sarcasm
The situation blew up on Twitter/X, sparking heated discussions among fans and pros alike.
- f0bia (CS analyst) tweeted: “Unfortunate and tricky situation. Some sort of rematch should probably play role here, as it’s 3rd party issue”, backing the idea of a replay.
- AXEL, from another team, wrote: “This is exactly what happened to us today,” highlighting it’s not an isolated incident.
- Some users criticized organizers: “Integrity and fairness? You’re asking for too much. That doesn’t exist nowadays I’m afraid.”
- Others mocked smooya’s stance after he said fish123 wouldn’t play a replay if one was forced: “Fix his AC and we will see you in the final my boss, but this isn’t it.”
There were also deeper takes: Groove argued this proves the need for six-man rosters to avoid last-minute stand-in issues:
Another day of supporting having 6 man rosters in CS. Imagine having a 6th player who has a different approach to the game…
Meanwhile, others urged G2 to simply move on. Kevin zteeek tweeted:
We’ve all been in similar situations before. I understand your frustration, it sucks. But playing the match until you lose and then asking for a rematch is silly. Just gotta take the L and move on.
Why this match matters for the scene
OfUnited21 League isn’t a top-tier event, but it’s a vital platform for up-and-coming teams to showcase themselves. For G2 Ares, this series could have been a step into the final and a shot at a trophy — but a technical blunder changed everything.
Now, G2’s academy is in the lower bracket, and the debate over AkrosAC’s reliability is raging across the CS2 community: can anticheats be trusted when one false flag can erase hours of work and tilt entire tournaments?
