PSG.LGD wins first Major for the team as well as for China

From 12 teams and countless Dota 2 matches, we’re left with just two – PSG.LGD and Team Liquid both fighting hard to claim the EPICENTER XL trophy and their first Major win. In Moscow, Russia, everything is ready to witness this epic final.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZLKY_Zrc7VU

Game 1 started with the two constantly swapping kills, with LGD leading by a small margin by repeatedly catching Miracle-‘s Gyrocopter. But it was Liquid who dominated the first game. They consistently killed enemy core heroes and took the mid lane barrack. But in that phase, Liquid pushed too much and Ame took advantage of this opportunity in the top lane. Thanks to his mastery of Morphling, he turned the tide of battle completely

Not long after that, LGD started the final push and they had no problem finishing the match after the exciting game 1.

The next game, Liquid gave them a weird draft with Bane and Drow Rander, and Miracle took control of Invoker. Things didn’t go well for Liquid at first, but the members soon found space to farm, and Miracle’s Invoker began to find its footing and destroy the LGD roster. With an early Rampage phase from Invoker, LGD could not withstand Liquid, so the opponent had to equalize the score to draw 1-1.

This series produced one of the best Dota matches from both teams – with kills and opening fights coming from both big mistakes. Liquid were almost able to take a 2-1 win when they used a buyback for a big win in the Roshan area. After the aegis, the team pushed highround when they learned that Ame’s Phantom Lancer had ‘die-back’. But Liquid became too greedy when LGD still defended with the remaining 4 members, and when there was no buyback on their own, Liquid put an end to themselves. The series is now 2-1 in favor of LGD after what happened in game 3, which was then considered a throw by Liquid.

EPICENTER XL, Playoff
The 3rd map goes to PSG.LGD! What a crazy game ?

??@TeamLiquid [1-2] ??@LGDgaming, bo5 | Grand Final

The best way to watch EPICENTER XL: https://t.co/zyzpO0St4M ?
with @ODPixel & @AdmiralBulldog!#epicgg #epicenter #dota2 pic.twitter.com/lWZJ0fi2p0

— EPICENTER (@epicentergg) May 6, 2018

Liquid entered game 4 with a must-win goal to find their way to shore in the finals and they soon mastered the game: good rotation and early Blink Dagger for Ax to get good kills. But again, Ame played brilliantly, as he always found all the space he needed to farm. Once Ame’s Slark was ripe, Liquid couldn’t react in time and it all seemed too late for the European team.

We can’t help but mention xNova’s late game 4, when he placed Serpent Ward stakes right into MinD_ContRoL, sending Ax to the board seconds after using his buyback. Just seconds later, GG was tapped and LGD ended the series with a score of 3-1.

Remember, PSG.LGD got themselves their first Major win for the team and also for China, taking them to 4th place on the DPC leaderboard. The International 2018 has only 1 Minor and 3 Majors left. LGD put on stunning Dota 2 performances at the EPICENTER XL and is well-deserved. Ame alone was voted the best player of the series, for his great handling throughout 4 games. But the whole team performed excellently and overcame small mistakes to advance to the championship.

MVP of the EPICENTER XL!

#epicgg #epicenter #dota2 pic.twitter.com/BSxA3BnNV2

— EPICENTER (@epicentergg) May 6, 2018