Gaimin Gladiators Dominates Lower Bracket Run at Dota 2’s The International 2023
The International 2023 started slow for Dota 2, but Gaimin Gladiators have made a remarkable comeback in the lower bracket. They have now won three consecutive rounds without dropping a single game. As a result, North America’s hope for an underdog victory has been shattered.
Gaimin Gladiators pulled off some major upsets at TI12, including a 2-0 victory over TSM. This victory allowed them to secure the highest placement for a North American team at the event. They continued their Cinderella story and reached the top eight. However, their dreams came crashing down when they faced Gaimin and were completely outplayed in the second-fastest series of the playoffs.
Game one was a disappointment for Gaimin. Despite managing to kill dyrachyo’s Weaver multiple times early on, Gaimin’s offlane dominance prevented nouns from controlling the game’s pace. Nouns drafted one of Moo’s signature heroes, Brewmaster, which should have allowed them to take down towers and establish map dominance. However, they could only bring down Gaimin’s tier one towers before Gaimin cornered them in their base. With all Gaimin’s heroes dominating the net worth chart, every fight became one-sided, even when nouns had the element of surprise towards the end of game one.
In the second match, nouns stuck to their strategies and allowed Gaimin to draft another “death-ball push” strategy centered around Seleri’s Chen. Gaimin further improved their game two draft with heroes like Alchemist and Dazzle, who became active even faster. Gaimin was able to push into nouns’ base before they could even utilize their core items. Despite a great initiation by Moo’s Dark Seer, Gaimin quickly recovered and secured the victory.
With the elimination of nouns, Gaimin secured a top-six finish at TI 2023. However, their journey to the Aegis of Champions is far from over. Despite being one of the most dominant teams of 2023 with three major wins, Tofu highlighted that each tournament brings new challenges and learnings for Gaimin.
On the other hand, nouns exited TI 2023 with a top-eight placement. According to Astini in the team’s post-match interview, they have “no regrets” about their performance. Coming into the tournament from the regional qualifiers, attending TI was a dream come true for nouns. They leave with a story to tell, including eliminating the TI11 champions and becoming the best North American team in the process.
Dota 2, The International 2023, Gaimin Gladiators, North America, lower bracket, dominant, victory, nouns, Cinderella story, playoffs, top eight, Gaimin heroes, net worth chart, Moo’s Dark Seer, Tofu, elimination, top-six finish, Astini, performance, TI11 champions, North American team.