Day 3 and 4 of the KL Major Playoffs is over and the finals are fast approaching. Both days saw ups and downs as teams fought to stay alive in the major.
Alliance vs TNC Predator
The stakes were high for both teams. Alliance looked to shake off their 0-2 loss to PSG.LGD while the hopes of SEA were on TNC‘s shoulders. In the end, it was TNC Predator who came out as victors with a 2-0 win over their opponents. Despite having the better draft in both games, Alliance constantly made mistakes and TNC capitalize on them. TNC Predator continues their trudge in the lower brackets while Alliance bows out with a disappointing end to their run after a brilliant start to the season.
Vici Gaming vs Pain X
Pain X were out of their league in their match vs Vici Gaming. The Chinese squad dominated the South American team in both games. Ori’s Dragon Knight caused a lot of issues for Pain X in Game 1 while Paparazi helped himself to 20 kills in Game 2 on his Morphling. Vici Gaming’s win sets up a clash between them and TNC Predator today.
Fnatic vs J.Storm
J.Storm pulled off a shocker on Day 2 by beating Chinese team, Team Aster. On the other had, Fnatic lost convincingly beaten by Virtus Pro 2-0 in the upper bracket. Fans were treated to Abed’s Meepo in Game 1 but the pick did not work out as J.Storm endured the long game and claimed Game 1. Fnatic won the next two games by picking Arc Warden twice. J.Storm had no answer to the pick as the Arc Warden proved too hot to handle.
Evil Geniuses vs Forward Gaming
A battle of two North American teams. Brother vs brother. Former teammates facing against each other. Many storylines could be written from this matchup. Despite expectations of an epic match, EG dominated Game 1. Game 2 saw Forward Gaming roar back with Resolution‘s unstoppable Spectre. Game 3 had EG pull out the Arc Warden that Fnatic put to good use earlier. The hero once again proved to be too powerful as EG knock Forward Gaming out of the tournament. The win locks EG into the next round where they faced Fnatic today.
TNC Predator vs Vici Gaming
Day 4 began with TNC taking on VG. The odds were against TNC as VG were the favourites to go through. However, TNC did not back down from the challenge. Vici Gaming took Game 1 in a tightly contested game. Game 2 saw VG take an early lead but they were not able to capitalize on it. TNC fought back and forced a deciding Game 3. Despite VG picking Paparazi his signature Morphling, it was not enough to withstand TNC’s advance into the next round.
Fnatic vs Evil Geniuses
Both teams felt the pressure to advance to the next round. Fnatic aimed to become the next SEA team to enter the next round after TNC’s success against VG. On the other hand, EG were the last hope for North America. Yet again, Arc Warden appeared in Game 1. Both teams favoured the Arc Warden pick especially in their previous series’. EG took the hero and secured Game 1. However, the hero was banned in Game 2 and the highly valued Terrorblade managed to enter the draft. With the hero, EG took Game 2 despite fierce resistance from Fnatic.
After today’s Day 4 matches, the tournament will have a 1 day break before continuing into Day 5. Day 5 will feature Secret vs PSG.LGD while Ninjas in Pyjamas will take on Virtus Pro in the upper bracket. The first match of Round 4 of the Lower Bracket will also take place on Day 5.
For more info on the Kuala Lumpur Major, you can check out their official site.