Team Liquid Avenges their Majors Defeat

The series of Team Liquid against Gaimin Gladiators was one of the most anticipated matches for The Riyadh Masters 2023. However, unlike most LANs and despite Liquid’s best effort to dodge their nemesis, the series came early in the tournament as the second series of the upper bracket matches.

Although Liquid had beaten Gaimin a few times during their regional playoffs, the team had never won against them in LANs. Moreover, Gaimin always triumphed over them, taking several LAN titles throughout the 2022-2023 DPC Season. Fortunately, this time, Team Liquid overcame their demons, Gaimin Gladiators, knocking them down to the lower brackets. Here’s the summary of all the actions that went down.

Game 1

Both teams had a similar draft in game 1. Gaimin Gladiators drafted a tempo-heavy draft with Slark as the safelaner, midlane Pangolier backed by offlane Broodmother to take objectives. Team Liquid went with midlane Ember Spirit, safelane Monkey King and offlane Visage.

Liquid won the laning stage as their midlaner dominated the lane, and the team built their momentum onwards. Despite their draft relying heavily on winning the lane, GG didn’t flinch and looked for ways to get back into the game. At 27 minutes, a skirmish for Roshan turns the tide for the Gladiators. They capitalised on this window, slowly deteriorating Liquid’s lead. Eventually, at 42 minutes, Gaimin closed out game 1.

Game 2 

In game 2, Team Liquid drafted a time-oriented draft with midlane Templer Assasin, safelane Monkey King and offlane DarkSeer. GG opted for a line-up with much later in-game timing, drafting Morphling as their safelaner and Pangolier as their midlaner. Despite having differences in their draft, both teams traded blows during the laning stage, with only a few of the blows landing.

However, as the laning stage ended, the midlane of TL hit his item timing, and the team quickly started to play around him to build their momentum. Although Gaimin tried their best to hold the assault of Team Liquid, Liquid played methodically. Furthermore, they had enough answers on how to deal with the Morphling. A high-ground push at 37 minutes by TL secured the game by 39 minutes.

Game 3

Team Liquid stuck to the same draft swapping their offlane Dark Seer for an offlane Legion Commander in game 3. However, Gaimin Gladiators went with a Strom Spirit mid and offlane Timbersaw to back their safelane Terrorblade. Having the draft advantage allowed the support duo of TL to rotate during the laning stage, ensuring a secured kill on the safelaner of Gaimin. Team Liquid snowballs their lead into the mid-game, securing objectives and forcing skirmishes in their favour. Seizing high ground methodically, Liquid did not let GG break their formation. Having no options left at 42 minutes, Gaimin tapped out from game 3, giving the series to Team Liquid.

Winning the series, Liquid advanced to the upper bracket semi-finals against Talon Esports. Gaimin Gladiators still have the chance to defend their reputation as they have an alternate route through the lower brackets. Their upcoming match is up against Tundra Esports.

Featured Image Source: Twitter/@TeamLiquid