Talon Esports showed yet another fantastic performance in the Riyadh Masters 2023, keeping Southeast Asia’s flame alive by defeating 9Pandas and Gaimin Gladiators on their way to the lower bracket final. This victory came as a big surprise, considering that both of them are the current European heavyweights who were favored by the pundits to advance to the grand final.
About two days ago, they almost reached the upper bracket final after cornering Team Liquid in an intense best-of-three series. Unfortunately, a small mistake cost them their triumph in the deciding round, relegating them to the lower bracket quarterfinals. However, it appears that their zeal to compete until the finish of this tournament was unaffected by that shocking loss. In the two most difficult rounds of this tournament, they demonstrated that the title of Southeast Asia’s finest is more than just hype.
The first obstacle was overcome when they met 9Pandas in the quarterfinals and won 2-0. Their ace, Nuengnara “23savage” Teeramahanon, was in the spotlight with his incredible Medusa for two rounds in a row. 9Pandas tried everything to stop Talon, but none of their efforts actually worked. Although they put up a good fight in game one, the margin between them widened as game two became a slaughtershow.
The victory brought Talon to the semifinals, where they faced Gaimin Gladiators, one of the most powerful teams in the Dota 2 competitive circuit of the season. Their track record in big events had left commentators skeptical about Talon’s chances, particularly after their match in the Dreamleague S20 tournament last month. Despite the odds, they managed to break the pattern and showed that no matter how powerful the gladiators are, they are not gods, and everything is possible.
The first half was the highlight of the Talon trio’s combination, which was very effective in suppressing their opponents. Together with 23savage, Rafli “Mikoto” Rahman, and team captain Anucha “Jabz” Jirawong were able to suppress Leshrac, one of Quinn “Quinn” Callahan’s signature heroes. Jabz’s Razorblade regularly opened space for Mikoto and 23savage to exploit in important team battles, scattering Gaimin. Talon won game 1 with a score of 33-16 in the 50th minute.
Gaimin replied in game 2 with a Bristleback-Leshrac combination, resulting in a narrow win for them. Despite being pushed by Talon for the first 30 minutes, they played with patience and discipline to close their gap. Anton “dyrachyo” Shkredov’s Bristleback was eventually able to finish his core items and brute force his way into the late game. Gaimin won game 2 as Talon was forced to surrender in the 47th minute.
In the decisive game, Talon decided to go with the Snapfire and Monkey King combo, which proved to be a complete terror. Gaimin chose Ember Spirit-Morphling to level the playing field, but it proved ineffective. The king of 2023’s Dota 2, Mikoto, was unable to lay a finger on Mikoto, who completely shocked them for 50 minutes straight. Talon ultimately ended Gaimin’s season-long winning streak in the 53rd minute.
They have no time to celebrate, though, as their work is far from done. To advance to the grand final, they must first settle their score with Team Liquid, who fell to the lower bracket final following a surprising defeat to Team Spirit. Given how far they were able to push Liquid, it will be intriguing to see what tricks 23savage has up his sleeve to repay the favor.
