Shopify Rebellion keeps NA Bali Major Hopes Alive

The tiebreakers series took place as the group stage for The Bali Major ended. Although NA teams, Shopify Rebellion and Nouns, had a terrific first day, they slowly fell off as The Bali Major progressed. Nouns got eliminated from Group B with a score of one win, three ties and five losses.

However, Shopify Rebellion, with a score of one win, four ties and three losses, had to play the tiebreaker series against Blacklist Rivalry. Fortunately, Shopify Rebellion triumphed over the SEA team, keeping North America’s Bali Major hopes alive. The game went the distance, and although Blacklist made SR bleed, they recovered quickly. Here’s a quick recap of the action that went down.

Game 1

Shopify Rebellion opted for a fast-paced draft with a Puck midlane, Broodmother offlane and a Lycan safelane. Not only their draft allowed them to play a fast-tempo game, but it also allowed them to go safely into the late game if the situation arose. Blacklist Rivalry, on the other hand, went with a Templer Assasin safelane and a Storm Spirit midlane. Their draft allowed them to have a global presence in the game.

However, Blacklist could not keep up with the pace SR played. Due to Lycan and Broodmother, SR could easily take objectives from the start. Although they made some mistakes during the high-ground attempt, Blacklist Rivalry could not capitalise effectively on those since they were behind in a lot of net worth deposits. Eventually, at 47 minutes, Shopify Rebellion took game 1.

Game 2

Blacklist went with a Naga Siren safelane draft in game 2. They backed the Naga with a midlane Primial Beast, and offlane Doom. Although SR’s midlane Leshrac destroyed Primial Beast’s lane, the Primal Beast got back into the game as they relentlessly pressured SR’s safelane Dragon Knight.

Blacklist Rivalry’s safelane Naga Siren safely secured the farm while his team was creating chaos across the map with their midlaner and offlaner. The game quickly crumbled for SR as Blacklist’s Naga came online, hitting her crucial item timings. Despite SR taking fantastic fights on their high ground, it wasn’t enough, as Blacklist was ahead by a margin. At 32 minutes, SR eventually tapped from game 2.

Game 3

Both teams went for a tempo-paced draft in game 3. However, Shopify Rebellion, with their midlane Ember Spirit draft, started to pull ahead as the supports with the perfect rotations enabled him to have a better game. As their midlane Ember Spirit came online quickly, SR played around him and secured objectives. With their safelane Lycan coming online, SR forced team fights and secured Roshan. Eventually, at 34 minutes, Blacklist Rivarly tapped out from game 3, giving the series to Shopify Rebellion.

Winning the tiebreaker series, SR advanced to the lower bracket of The Bali Major playoffs. They will face the loser of Team Liquid against PSG.LGD.