The race for Playoffs heats up: DreamLeague Season 23 Group Stage Day 2
Day 2 of DreamLeague Season 23's group stage delivered another exciting day of Dota 2 games, filled with unexpected upsets and dramatic comebacks.
Few teams comfortably sit on top of the ladder while the rest continue to struggle.
Here’s how DreamLeague Season 23 Group Stage Day 2 went:
Photo: ValveTeam Liquid’s inability to close late-game
In a surprising turn of events, Xtreme Gaming pulled off a stunning victory against Team Liquid in the opening series.
Team Liquid registered a comfortable victory in the first game, and just when they seemed poised to win game two, Xtreme Gaming pulled off an epic victory.
Team Liquid was off to a great start with an unstoppable Micke, going 19-0 on Windrunner. At one point, the team led with a margin of more than 26k gold.
However, Xtreme Gaming held on to their base and with XinQ’s outstanding plays on Nyx Assassin, they were able to turn the game around.
Team Liquid's struggle to close out late games is real, as Insania himself admitted in an interview at PGL Wallachia Season 1.
They find themselves in a tough spot and need to win their series against PSG Quest cleanly while pinning their hopes on other teams’ results to qualify for the Dota 2 DreamLeague Season 23 Playoffs.
Photo: ValveTundra Esports goes unbeaten
Tundra Esports showed their strength by securing a 2-0 victory over BetBoom Team and NAVI on Day 2 of DreamLeague Season 23 Group Stage. While BetBoom displayed moments of brilliance, Tundra's experience and coordination ultimately proved too much to handle.
BetBoom Team are on the verge of rage-quitting IRL again – a situation which occurred during PGL Wallachia Season 1. However, their chances of qualifying for the playoffs are extremely grim, so they might as well rage-quit.
Tundra’s second victory against NAVI was equally easy, with the Ukrainian squad struggling to find their rhythm and playstyle. Nonetheless, Tundra sits comfortably in second position in their group and has virtually qualified for the Dota 2 DreamLeague Season 23 Playoffs.
Photo: ValveGaimin Gladiators get their vengeance
Gaimin Gladiators got their vengeance by defeating Team Liquid in a clean series. To the uninitiated, TL had defeated GG in the PGL Wallachia Season 1 Playoffs and sent them to the lower bracket, after which the latter got eliminated.
GG is starting to find its rhythm, something which seemed missing since the beginning of the year and sits comfortably atop the mountain in the first place. However, their second series against Heroic ended up in a draw much to GG’s chagrin.
GG has also virtually qualified for the DreamLeague Season 23 Playoffs.
Other details
Here are the other details which you might want to know:
- Team Falcons have also qualified for the playoffs. They remain one of the favourites to win DreamLeague Season 23.
- Shopify Rebellion, NAVI, Azure Ray, Team Liquid and BetBoom continue to disappoint.
- DreamLeague Season 23 Group Stage Day 3 is going to lock the seeds for the playoffs.
- Aurora has made a decent comeback on the second day and is likely to qualify for the playoffs.
- PSG Quest is the first team to be eliminated.
The race for Playoffs heats up
With Day 2's upsets and comebacks, the battle for playoff spots in both Group A and B becomes even more captivating. Keep an eye out for further updates as DreamLeague Season 23 continues to unfold.
