Today’s final games at the Kuala Lumpur Major saw Fnatic and Evil Genius stay alive at the Dota 2 Major. With the lower bracket matches all featuring elimination matchups, it was crucial for the teams to win the series.
Fnatic wins 2-1 over J.storm.
Wild teamfights with @milandota2’s Rubick gives @Team_JStorm the edge v FNATIC in the series opener! #KualaLumpurMajorhttps://t.co/GUXkmqVlUy pic.twitter.com/rl66jLO5X4
— Twitch Esports (@TwitchEsports) November 13, 2018
Fnatic went up against J.Storm in a closely contested series. With the first game seeing a very team fight focussed lineup on both sides, positioning and timing was important. Fnatic saw Meepo and Enigma on their team, while J.Storm had a Spectre and Earthshaker. Despite having a Meepo against a Spectre, the game did draw out very long. With Spectre as the late game carry, the game was slowly tilting away from Fnatic and rightfully so. Meepo does taper off towards the late game and Spectre has scope for growth. J.Storm won Game 1 and it was off some fantastic team fights and excellent positioning.
After a great series from both teams we drop the series to @FNATIC 1-2.
That does it for our run in the #KualaLumpurMajor
Thank you all for the support throughout the tournament!#BringTheStorm pic.twitter.com/LxKh7GBy6y
— J.Storm (@Team_JStorm) November 13, 2018
Game 2 was quite similar to the first game in the way the teams were positioned. However, there was no super late game carry for J.storm to rely on. At the same time, Fnatic kept poking and prodding at J.Storm until they were able to find their perfect team fight. The third game was a wipeout as Fnatic took the lead in the early game and never let go of their control over J.Storm. The momentum on their side, Fnatic looked extremely strong and dominant on this map.
Despite the loss, J.Storm definitely is a team that, on another day, would have easily defeated Fnatic. For now, they will have to attempt again in the next Dota 2 Major.
Evil Geniuses eliminate Forward Gaming.
The first game was a clean sweep for Evil Geniuses. They had an early lead and they made sure to grow this lead even further. Rtz’s Arc Warden was simply too much for the Forward Gaming roster to handle. It was a game that Forward Gaming would just leave behind them as they prepared mentally for the next game. Outdrafted and outskilled in the game, Forward Gaming was in no mood to give up just yet.
ArcTZ!: @Arteezy's 997 GPM on Arc Warden is the all-time pro #Dota2 record for the hero, and is the highest GPM recorded in 7.19 (1,155 matches) by a hero other than Alchemist. @EvilGeniuses moves on at the #KualaLumpurMajor!https://t.co/ucIheL66hD pic.twitter.com/cXPLseJnde
— Nahaz (@NahazDota) November 13, 2018
The second game saw Forward Gaming get their hands on a very good set of heroes. With Lina, Pugna, Spectre on one team, the slow siege and the apparent farm in the late game was a long drawn-out process. Both the teams waited for the opponents to make a mistake. They would often wait for high ground hoping that the other team makes a mistake. However, Foward Gaming was definitely the more aggressive one, constantly finding multiple Evil Geniuses players’ unawares and out of position. With so much lockdown in the form of Lina, Shadow shaman etc; they had a relatively easy time controlling the pace of the game.
Tough series but we managed to take it vs @goFORWARDgg , Playing @FNATIC tomorrow! #KualaLumpurMajor
— Tal Aizik (@talflyaizik) November 13, 2018
The third game was a relatively lacklustre performance by Forward Gaming. Despite this, they were able to put up some really strong individual performances. However, S4 was crucial in ensuring a strong performance in this game. His axe controlled the opponents and allowed the space for Sumail and Arteezy to take control of the game. We saw Rtz once again on the Arc Warden. While he did not have the same effect in this game like Game 1, the rest of the team stepped up to ensure that Evil Geniuses stays alive in the Dota 2 Major.
The Kuala Lumpur Major will continue with the upper bracket matches tomorrow.
