Team Spirit are your Riyadh Masters 2023 Champions!

The Riyadh Masters 2023 has reached its climax, as Team Spirit emerge victorious as The Champions. Despite being the heavy underdogs at the tournament, they bested the favourites twice, as the grand finals series was the rematch of the upper bracket final series.

Despite being at their peak performance, Team Liquid could not secure a tier 1 tournament throughout this season. They have always come in close second. They had placed three second-place spots during their runs at Valve’s DPC Major, always falling short against Gaimin Gladiators. Despite besting their arch-nemesis at The Riyadh Master 2023, the team again fall short against The International 2021 Champions, Team Spirit, at the grand finals. The team eliminated Talon Esports at the lower bracket finals to avenge their upper bracket defeat, but they couldn’t. Here’s the summary of all the actions that happened at the grand finals.

Game 1 

Team Liquid drafted a cheesy draft in game 1, centring around their midlane Templer Assasin. Their offlane, Naga Siren, caught Sprit by surprise. Although TS heavily prioritised Liquid’s safelane Leshrac, Liquid won the other two lanes. Their Leshrac recovered as Liquid started to snowball their laning advantage. They picked off Spirit across the map, and eventually, at 33 minutes, they took the game.

Game 2

Both teams had a similar draft to game 1 in game 2. However, Team Spirit’s playstyle drastically changes in game 2. They got more active during the laning stage to match Liquid’s aggression. Regardless, Team Liquid, with some fancy manoeuvres, won the laning stage.

Despite getting pressured, Spirit’s safelane Faceless Void managed to sneak up on a much-needed farm while joining crucial skirmishes. They successfully halted Liquid’s aggression. As the game proceeded to the late game, Team Spirit started pulling ahead as they took favourable fights. The match ended with a Roshan fight at 49 minutes. Despite TL bringing numbers, Team Spirit took the calculated skirmish, taking game 2 to tie the series.

Game 3

Team Spirit opted for a safelane Troll Warlord, a hero that isn’t seen much in the current meta, in game 3. Team Liquid opted for a tempo-paced draft with a safelane Bloodseeker, midlane Leshrac and offlane Visage. However, at a 22-minute skirmish, despite Liquid having an Aegis advantage, TS outfought them. Spirit fought their way into the game, upsetting Liquid’s game plan. Having no answers for the well-farmed Troll Warlord, TL tapped out at 46 minutes.

Game 4

In game 4, Team Spirit was the aggressor. Despite losing their lanes, they successfully dodged the snowball attempt from Liquid as their safelane Terrorblade farmed. As the game progressed, a couple of mistakes from them gave TL a window to get back into the game. Nevertheless, a critical misplay by Team Liquid’s safelane Drow Ranger at 41 minutes cost them the match.

Team Spirit took home USD 5 million in prize winnings, while Team Liquid took USD 2.5 million in winnings. The Prince of Saudi Arabia also congratulates Team Spirit on their victory.

Featured Image Source: Twitter/@Gamers8GG