Credits to: Dota2Ti Twitch | Contributed Photo
An underdog esports team from Southeast Asia defeated, and ultimately prevented Team Spirit, from defending their title in The International (TI), the largest esports tournament among professional players of the hit multiplayer online battle arena title Dota 2.
BOOM Esports, composed of Filipino and Indonesian players, defeated Team Spirit in the Lower Bracket elimination of T1 11 held on October 20 (Philippine Standard Time).
The stinging loss also meant that Team Spirit, the Ukrainian-Russian group that clinched the highly coveted championship title in T1 10, won’t be proceeding anymore to the championships for this year’s TI.
Members of the winning team from BOOM Esports include Filipinos Rolen Andrei Gabriel Ong (team captain), Erin Jasper Ferrer (mid-laner), and Timothy John Randrup (support).
All have rendered more than 10,000 Matchmaking Rating (MMR) in the Southeast Asia (SEA) Server, described by fans and casual players as the ‘training grounds in reinforcing one’s mental health’ due to alleged rampant toxic behavior.
Also part of the winning team are Souliya Khoomphetsavong (Carry), from Laos with 12,000 MMR, and Saieful Ilham from Indonesia with 11,000 MMR.
Considered an underdog in the lucrative Dota 2 tournament, BOOM won against Team Spirit with a Disruptor, Marci, Mars, Beastmaster, and Shadow Fiend Radiant draft against Lich, Lifestealer, Leshrac, Nyx Assassin, and Outworld Destroyer Dire draft.
BOOM also drew first blood, with a classic early smoke in the Radiant South Jungle.
Both teams approached the game defensively and played safe since losing means outright elimination under the Lower Bracket matches. The game was finally sealed with a strong Shadow Fiend and a Refresher Orb Mars.
Professional Dota 2 players render more than 20,000 hours playing the popular MOBA title which has spawned a multi-million dollar franchise, including worldwide tournaments such as TI.
On average, they earn around $2,000 to $15,000 (roughly P118,000 to P885,000 in today’s exchange rates) per month. Dota 2 International champions usually take home between $1,000,000 to $7,000,000 (around P59 million to P413 million) in prize money. /rcg
Hermes is a contributing writer.
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