Team Secret is the Best Team in the World
While many have claimed to have foreseen the result from the very first day of ESL One, no one could have expected how dominant Team Secret would be en route to taking the title in Katowice. Secret only dropped one game all tournament, leaving them with an astonishing 16-1 record. Furthermore, many of the games they won were comebacks, showing just how resilient they are in bad situations.
Before the start of the weekend both Team Secret and Virtus.pro were tied for DPC points, and there was a back and forth argument about which team was the best. Now that both tournaments are finished, it is clear that Clement 'Puppey' Ivanov and Team Secret are the best in the world.
Miracle Does Not Die
This weekend also saw Team Liquid return to the winner's circle as they triumphed in Macau with a dominant overall record of 12-3. A critical part of their success however was their star midlaner Amer 'Miracle-' Al-Barkawi, who went deathless in five of the last six games of the tournament, as well as having a combined KDA of 33-4-14 in the Grand Finals.
Simply put: Miracle is a beast and should immediately be in the conversation for best player in the world, if it is not already a foregone conclusion.
Gambit is Really, Really Good
Although Team Secret ran the table in Katowice, their constant tournament sparring partner, as well as tournament runner-up, Gambit Esports, showed just how good they are. No one expected them to play as well as they did, constantly upsetting established teams with their ferocious approach to the game. They quickly became a team to be feared and proved it when they stopped OG's Lower Bracket run and eliminated them from the tournament in a 2-0 series win.
It is fair to say that Gambit has arrived, and we should all be keeping an eye on them to see what they do next.
11:2 vs everyone else
— Gambit Esports (@GambitEsports) February 24, 2019
0:7 vs Team Secret
¯\_(ツ)_/¯ #ESLOne pic.twitter.com/dN6dTvdN7t
Evil Geniuses Breaks the 3rd Place Curse, For Now
Evil Geniuses is often noted for their consistency as well as being Lower Bracket beasts, but as of late all they have been able to do is reach the very end of the Lower Bracket and then lose in third place.
1 2 EG 4 5.
— Sumail (@SumaaaaiL) January 27, 2019
Finally, however, they have overcome the hump, beating Virtus Pro 2-1 to reach the Grand Finals in Macau. Although they could not beat Team Liquid for the championship, their second place finish is a necessary step toward them reclaiming their former glory specifically because of how they beat VP: After letting The Bears come back and steal Game One from them, EG were able to settle down and find the fortitude to take two straight; they still know how to win, they just need to be able to actually do it.
Whether they can continue to produce better results at tournaments remains to be seen, but as of right now any improvement is welcome for Evil Geniuses and their fans.
EG Dota places 2nd at MDL Macau, losing 3-1 in the Grand Final. GGs and Congratulations to @TeamLiquid!
— Evil Geniuses (@EvilGeniuses) February 24, 2019
We'll be back in action at the DreamLeague Major next month, where we'll be looking to secure our spot at TI9 with a good placing.
The Bears Are on Thin Ice
It was not long ago that Virtus Pro was considered the best in the world.
The Bears had an incredibly shaky tournament in Macau this weekend. From the very beginning they were losing matches they should have been winning, and although they were able to cobble together a scrappy Lower Bracket run, it was all just a cut below for a team that was expected to win the tournament.
That being said, they are still Virtus Pro. One bad tournament does not mean that they are falling off. It very well could simply be an anomaly. And some standout performances by Aleksey 'Solo' Berezin and Roman 'RAMZEs' Kushnarev shows that they are still a very strong team. But Dota 2 is a notoriously fickle game where teams can rise and fall by the changes in a single patch. It will be worth paying attention to how VP responds after their third place finish in Macau.
We really appreciate all your support and kind words! Stay with us and we will come back even stronger! #MDLMacau #GOGOVP pic.twitter.com/Sr2twoVGd0
— Virtus.pro (@virtuspro) February 24, 2019
Is there any team that can hope to compete with Team Secret?
Photo Credit - ESL - Bart Oerbekke
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