Ones to watch at the Major: Tigers

Ones to watch at the Major: Tigers
Ones to watch at the Major: Tigers
posted by Olucaron,
The Kuala Lumpur Major is just around the corner, and in the run up to the first Major of the new DPC season we take a brief look at four teams. For this one we take a look at SEA side Tigers.



An organisation reborn



In January, wth TNC Predator deciding to go with an all-Filipino roster, veteran Canadian support Theeban '1437' Siva found himself without a side. Cue TNC Tigers, born in March to give him and his international, SEA-based roster a home.

However, just six months later, having narrowly missed out on qualification for The International 2018, they fell victim to Valve’s rule change on sister teams.

With 1437 and Indonesian pair Kenny 'Xepher' Deo and Muhammad 'inYourdreaM' Rizky retaining the core of the old TNC Tigers side to play under the Static Dream banner, the Tigers were reborn. With Canadian offlaner David 'Moonmeander' Tan and Malaysian carry Lai Jay 'Ah Jit' Son on board, they were ready for the new DPC season.





Not the best start…



Immediately the side went into qualifiers for the Kuala Lumpur Major. They breezed through the open qualifier, not losing a single game, but came horribly undone at the SEA finals. Losses to region powerhouses Fnatic and Mineski, along with a lower bracket loss to Lotac, meant they would have to do things the hard way.

Minor qualifiers saw them discover some form, dropping just one game each in the open qualifier and regional finals. They followed that up with victory in the open qualifier for ESL One Hamburg, before falling in third place in the regional finals to EVOS Esports – where a win would have taken them to the event due to the withdrawal of former parents TNC Predator.

Narrowly missing out on playoffs in the King's Cup 2: SEA event, they went on to claim victory in the Southeast Asia Cyber Arena offline finals, before their big chance came…





A huge win in Stockholm



That’s right, Tigers are currently leading the fledgling DPC season following an epic win at the DreamLeague Minor.

First, they eased through a group containing Royal Never Give Up, The Final Tribe and BananaSlamJamma’s Rooons, ending with a 4-1 record. In the Upper Bracket, they took on Natus Vincere and came out on top, before claiming a rematch victory against RNG in the Upper Bracket finals.

A spot at the Major on the line, they took on a resurgent Na’Vi again — the CIS side having gone on an unbeaten Lower Bracket run to earn a rematch. After taking the first game, Tigers then lost two in a row to hand Na’Vi the advantage. With their fates on the line, a massive Game 4 forced a decider — which they dominated to lift the trophy and take their place in Kuala Lumpur.

With this kind of fighting spirit and form behind them, Tigers are a dark horse for a Major run. However, with the quality of opposition a step up, it will a litmus test for the rest of the season.


Roster:
- my Lai Jay 'Ah Jit' Son
- id Muhammad 'inYourdreaM' Rizky
- ca David 'Moonmeander' Tan
- id Kenny 'Xepher' Deo
- ca Theeban '1437' Siva


Do you think Tigers are dark horses for the Major?


Header image © Jennika Ojala | DreamHack

  • Olucaron

    Olucaron
    David W. Duffy
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