aurora sweep 9z to secure Thunderpick playoffs and third consecutive top-four finish

aurora sweep 9z to secure Thunderpick playoffs and third consecutive top-four finish

aurora defeated 9z 2–0 in the Thunderpick World Championship 2026 Group A decider, reversing their opening-day defeat and securing a semifinal meeting with FURIA Esports .

The victory extended aurora ’s run of strong tournament finishes following second place at StarSeries and third at ESL Pro League Season 24.

aurora 2–0 9z — Cache 13–11, Inferno 13–4

aurora selected Cache and established an 8–4 halftime advantage. Although 9z won seven rounds after the break, aurora collected the five they needed to close their pick in regulation.

Jimpphat finished Cache with 21 kills and 12 deaths, while captain kyxsan contributed 20–11. Their performances helped aurora secure the narrow opener despite HUASOPEEK recording 21 kills for 9z .

Inferno was considerably more decisive. aurora built a 9–3 first-half lead on 9z ’s selection, then conceded only one additional round before completing the sweep.

Wicadia led aurora on the second map with 20 kills, 11 deaths and 120.9 ADR, giving 9z little opportunity to force the series onto Mirage.

kyxsan leads the series

Across both maps, kyxsan recorded 33–20, a 1.45 HLTV Rating 3.0 and 92.7% KAST. Jimpphat added 31–18, while Wicadia finished with a team-high 36 kills.

The result provided a direct response to aurora ’s opening loss against the same opponent, when 9z had won Inferno 13–11 and Nuke 13–1.

aurora advanced to face FURIA Esports , whom they had beaten 2–1 at ESL Pro League earlier in October. For 9z , the decider defeat ended their tournament.