Group C of ESL Pro League season 15 continued today with the second day of play, which started with a surprising Movistar Riders victory over Players, Gambit’s CS:GO team competing under a neutral name.

It took the Spanish team three maps to overcome Players, who are currently one of the best teams in the world. The Counter-Strike giants fell on Inferno after a close battle, which ended with a 16-14 scoreline in favor of Movistar Riders. The CIS representatives answered with a dominant performance on their map pick, Mirage, defeating their rivals 16-7. Such a swift triumph was possible thanks to Ax1Le and sh1ro’s stellar showings (21-13 and 16-8 K/D ratio, respectively).

The latter player continued to impress viewers on the decisive map, Ancient. He finished it on top of the scoreboard in terms of a 2.0 ratio with a 1.61 score. This, however, wasn’t enough to stop the Spanish squad, who took the map 16-9 thanks to cohesive gameplay and strategy. In the series overall, it was mopoz who stood out from the Movistar Riders, with a 1.26 2.0 rating and 85.5 average damage, according to HLTV.

Many pundits had Players as the favorites to win Group C in the current season of ESL Pro League. The Russian side made quick work of Party Astronauts yesterday and many people expected them to continue to dominate the group. Movistar Riders’ victory will definitely stir up the competition, though.

The action in Group C of ESL Pro League season 15 will continue until Sunday, March 27. The top three teams will make it to the playoffs, with the top squad clinching a spot directly in the quarterfinals.