They say that the best athletes are those whose iron wills are forged and tested under the most intense of pressure. Whether it is the penalty kicks at the World Cup finals, or the deus point of the Wimbledon Open, the one who scores, wins.
Faced against certain elimination at their first The International, Boom Esports faced that same pressure, boiling and roiling in their stomachs. But they prevailed against the smallest of margins – 1.42 per cent – on the last day of the Group Stages of the competition.
And they did it in heart-pumping style.
Despite Boom being singled out as a potential dark horse for the competition – as the leader in the DPC SEA Tour 3 Division 1 – they put in a torrid performance in the first three days of TI. Boom Esports did not win any series in Group A, nicknamed the Group of Death. They were on the verge of becoming the group’s last seed.
Boom Esports finally got a ray of sunshine when they beat Evil Geniuses in their final game on the last day of the Group Stages.
Desperate win against Evil Geniuses
The first game saw a see-saw battle.
EG kept the game in control by constantly evading BOOM’s heroes and picking off everyone they could, yet jaCkyy and company found a way to cope with the pressure. They defended really well and secured the game in the 38th minute. The Hungry Beasts prevailed as Fbz’s Enigma – jaCkyy’s Bristleback combo shone brightly.
The second game was even tighter with Arteezy’s Naga Siren wreaking havoc upon Boom. In addition, Cr1t’s Rubick constantly reversed ganks with precision, as Arteezy effectively closed the entire map by himself with Naga’s illusions.
Again, Boom Esports showed how determined they were to win the game. Despite their mid game’s blunder, the team finally got what they were looking for as Fbz timely Refresher play turned the tide against EG in a teamfight that occured in the 54th minute. With Arteezy and Abed down, Boom Esports pushed all the way to EG’s base and sealed their victory.
Against all odds, Boom Esports finally won their first series against one of the best in the world. Their victory led to three way tiebreaker, as Soniqs Esports and BetBoom failed to win their games. This time, they won all tiebraker games easily and convincingly. With only a 1.42 percent chance of making it to the Lower Bracket, they surprised everyone and have kept their fans’ hopes alive so far. Looks like fortune was on their side that day.
Boom’s CEO Gary Ong and midlaner Yopaj shaved their heads to mark the passage through to the playoffs. It was their way of saying it was a close shave. But if they continue to play in this disjointed fashion, it will be more than hair that gets chopped off.
Talon falls..
In Group B, two southeast asia teams – Fnatic and Talon Esports – were competing against each other. In addition, they had to compete against formidable teams such as Team Spirit, Team Secret and Tundra Esports.
Talon Esports’ appearance at TI 11 was the sweetest opportunity they’ve had so far. The squad have established themselves as one of Southeast Asia’s finest by participating in TI 11 in their debut season. .
However, things were far from what they had in mind for their first ever TI competition. Talon Esports clearly struggled to break through the Group B, scoring only two wins against Fnatic and Entity. They were unable to provide a serious challenge for most of their opponents. In the end, they failed to capitalize from the tiebreaker against Entity in the final day of group stage.
Talon may have defeated this Entity team previously. However, with playoff tiebreakers on a stake, they appeared to be up against a different club. One player from Entity named Pure, which was once a joke among Talon players, turned into their worst nuisance in that tiebreaker. Despite the attempts of 23savage and mikoto to reverse the course of the game, the significant statistical difference implied that the Talon Esports players were mentally exhausted.
Talon Esports’ departure from the competition left Fnatic as the sole Southeast Asia’s team from Group B (and the second Southeast Asia in TI 11 after Boom Esports) to advance to the playoff stage.
But Fnatic makes it through
Fnatic seems to be the most reliable team from Southeast Asia, by playing it relatively “safe” so far. A record of 3 wins, 3 defeats, and 3 draws was enough to guarantee them a spot in the lower bracket competition.
Boom and Fnatic, however, understand better than anyone else that they still have room for improvement if they want to go further in this tournament. But for now they still preserve the prestige of Southeast Asian contenders for a TI held on their own soil.
Fnatic may appear to have better possibilities, based on their previous records. But as far as their records show, their mentality and chemistry must be improved.
Meanwhile, Boom should assess their performance and analyse their group stage games in preparation for the upcoming lower bracket match against the reigning champion, Team Spirit. They may have defied expectations by defeating Evil Geniuses, but luck surely played a significant part in their advancement to the playoffs considering how their opponents fared in the group stage.
