Team Liquid picked up an impressive win in the first week of the DPC WEU 2023 Tour 1 Division 1, defeating The International 2022 champions Tundra Esports 2-0.
Both teams showcased top-notch hero drafting and high-level team plays throughout the match. However, it was Liquid’s Michał “Nisha” Jankowski who stole the show.
The world-class midlaner pulled off an unbelievable Roshan and Aegis snatch play that capped off the series for Liquid and spelled the end of Tundra’s five-month undefeated streak.
Tundra won TI11 without dropping a series, and the last time they lost a match was to Team Aster on August 7 last year during the PGL Arlington Major.
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Team Liquid Nisha steals Roshan and Aegis from Tundra Esports
In game one, Liquid played defensively and relinquished map control after the laning phase. They avoided team fights against Tundra’s tanky core lineup with Chaos Knight, Tusk, and Beastmaster.
After losing heroes around the map to Tundra’s successful smoke ganks, Liquid finally went head-to-head with Tundra. The momentum shifted in Liquid’s favor after Michael “miCKe” Vu’s carry Ursa picked up a Blink Dagger. Liquid was finally able to burst down Tundra’s heroes, giving them the hero advantage in the late-game team fights.
Ludwig “zai” Wåhlberg’s offlane Dark Seer eventually finished off Tundra with an incredible 5-man Vacuum and Wall combo that gave Liquid a 1-0 lead over the TI11 champions.
In game two, Liquid took away Tundra’s midlane Tusk and picked the icy hero early in the drafting phase for Nisha. Liquid also picked a carry Bloodseeker, offlane Snapfire, and supports Riki and Rubick – heroes that are strong in the early game.
Liquid’s draft was a huge success as they won all three lanes and took a significant gold and experience lead over Tundra. While it looked like Liquid was in control, Tundra’s lineup favored the late game with their carry Faceless Void, support Tiny, and midlane Kunkka.
In a pivotal clash by the Roshan Pit, Tundra went for Roshan to gain the Aegis of the Immortal advantage. Taking the Aegis would have given them a better chance to catch up with Liquid.
Liquid contested Tundra, but they were immediately put at a disadvantage with miCKe’s Bloodseeker activating his Black King Bar before the clash began. Tundra took this as an opportunity to kill Roshan.
However, Nisha’s Tusk picked the perfect time to blink into the Roshan Pit to steal the Roshan kill and the Aegis. To cover Nisha’s escape, Aydin “iNSaNiA” Sarkohi’s Rubick stole Kunkka’s X Marks the Spot skill that safely teleported Tusk back to Liquid’s side of the map.
Following Nisha’s play, Liquid were able to cut off Tundra’s retreat and secure three kills. Tundra fell even further behind, and Liquid took the 2-0 series win a few minutes later.
Team Liquid is now tied with Tundra Esports for first place in week two of the DPC WEU 2023 Tour 1 Division 1.
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