Vitality vs. NiP Odds, Prediction, and Pick for April 22nd – ESL One: Road to Rio

The European division of the ESL One: Road to Rio event will see some mouth-watering clashes take place in the group stage.

And one of the opening-day clashes pins Team Vitality against Ninjas in Pyjamas. The teams know each other quite well and they did recently meet up so they will know exactly what to expect from the tie.

My Vitality vs. Nip betting preview takes a look at what the top rated CS:GO betting sites have rolled out and I then share my betting prediction based on this and some key stats for both teams.

The odds below are courtesy of Betway. Here are the main betting markets the bookmaker has in store for us:

The teams are close in the world rankings but Vitality’s superior form as of late has made them the favorite here. Some great odds are floating around for NiP but is backing them a good option here?

Let’s see how the teams have been faring and try to figure that out.

The French organization didn’t make it far in the ESL Pro League. They fell to Astralis which can happen to any CS:GO team really but disappointing defeats against Team Spirit and OG was what condemned them to an early exit.

However, the team still possesses enough quality to make their mark here and they did beat Ninjas in Pyjamas twice this year already, so they should be entering the tie with confidence.

ZywOo is the player to watch out for and a lot will depend on his performance.

NiP is another team that didn’t exactly impress in the most recent ESL tournament. They did have an encouraging start with solid wins against Spirit and GODSENT but failed to clinch any of their next four ties.

ENCE, eventual champions Fnatic, and today’s opponents Vitality proved to be too much of a challenge for Plopski and his team in the group and Fnatic beat them again in the decider match.

The team is currently sitting 13th in the rankings and will need a good run here if they are to enter the Top 10 and start making a name for themselves among the elite pack.

Vitality has the edge in recent meetings as they have racked up two consecutive clean sweeps against NiP.

However, both these games were played on Nuke and Vertigo and I expect the Ninjas have learned their lesson. They do boast a great record on Overpass and Inferno and will have the advantage on each of the two maps.

The French team remains a big favorite but I feel the Swedes may nick this one. Since I’m not prepared to back them outright, I’m going to go with the Over 2.5 market which also provides great betting value and covers a narrow win for both teams.

There are several other thrilling esports events to bet on and you can find our complete betting preview selection for Wednesday, April 22nd below: