Philippine Team TnC Upset Two-Time Major Champions OG, Secures Top 8 in Dota 2’s International 2016

The Philippine dream has never been more alive. TnC has pulled off the biggest upset ever in Dota 2 history as they sweep two-time Major champions and tournament favorites OG 2-0 in the Lower Bracket, eliminating what many believed to be the best team of The International 2016 (TI6).

A victorious TnC team huddling after defeating OG. Pic courtesy of @DOTA2

Underdogs from the very start, TnC narrowly slipped into the Lower Bracket after a surprising performance in the Group Stages. In Day 1 of the Main Event, they decisively defeated Vici Gaming Reborn and had to face OG in Day 2, after the tournament favorites were swept by MVP Phoenix to the Lower Bracket. Defying all odds, the Pinoy squad defeated the veritable Goliath of the tournament in an intense two-game series to secure a guaranteed Top 8 position and a $500,000+ cut of the prize pool.

The first game of the historic series saw OG draft a relatively comfortable lineup with a Medusa and Drow Ranger core duo, with an offlane Faceless Void and a Witch Doctor and Enchantress support duo backing them up. TnC looked to nullify OG’s draft by picking up a tri-core consisting of Lifestealer, Phantom Lancer, and Axe to get into their opponent’s faces and disable the bonus damage given by Drow’s ultimate. OG started off with an early lead, but were on the losing end of teamfights as TnC were able to repeatedly suppress and kill Johan “N0tail” Sundstein on Drow. Masterful maneuvers and critical smoke ganks orchestrated by Jimmy “DeMoN” Ho on Vengeful Spirit allowed TnC to take back the lead, as Carlo “Kuku” Palad on Phantom Lancer and Marc Polo “Raven” Fausto on Lifestealer began to become too much to handle by OG. With teamfight control and additional damage provided by Nico “eyyou” Barcelon on Elder Titan and Sam “Sam_H” Hidalgo on Axe, even OG’s renowned 9k MMR superstar Amer “Miracle-“ Al-Barkawi on Medusa folded to the Pinoy squad’s relentless assault. TnC broke into OG’s base after winning a critical Roshan fight, and were able to force the GG after clearing their opponent’s barracks and promptly wiping them out. With Game 1 in the bag, TnC looked to be in high spirits while their opponents seemed visibly shaken. The next game could very well be the most pivotal one of all their professional careers.

TnC during their match vs OG. Pic courtesy of @DOTA2

OG looked to bounce back in Game 2 with a classic lineup centered on Ember Spirit for Miracle, Tiny for Notail, and a signature support Wisp for Andreas“Cr1t-“ Nielsen. However, TnC decided to close the series out with a Huskar pick for Kuku, backed up by a Drow Ranger for Raven, Faceless Void for Sam H, Dazzle for Eyyou, and Vengeful Spirit again for Demon. The Pinoy squad looked to set up an explosive early game with their Drow-Huskar core duo, but were shut out when OG were able to get the early lead again. Despite a rough start for his team, multiple three-man Chronospheres by Sam H’s Faceless Void allowed his carries to pick away at their opponents and keep TnC in the game. Despite being behind on kills, well-timed Gust silences on Miracle’s Ember Spirit by Raven’s Drow, along with more clutch Chronospheres by Sam H, allowed TnC to claw their way back to the lead as they reached the lategame. The Pinoy squad was able to repel multiple assaults on their base, drawing the desperation Divine Rapier pickup by Miracle at the 58-minute mark. As TnC broke into OG’s base, yet another three-man Chronosphere by Sam H allowed the now monstrous Huskar of Kuku to annihilate their opponents. As Miracle’s Ember Spirit scrambled to salvage the game for his team, a clutch Gust silence by Raven allowed TnC to destroy OG’s last line of defense and their hopes at going further into TI6. At 59 minutes and 20 seconds into the game, TnC did what many thought impossible as they force the GG call from OG, eliminating the two-time Major champions and tournament favorites.

With their historic triumph, TnC secured a Top 8 finish at TI6, the furthest any Pinoy team has gone in the tournament. Prior to their win, TnC had approximately $55,000 in lifetime prize earnings, their victory over OG has now secured them at least $500,000 or around a whopping P23 million. Such a huge amount of money was once thought to be unreachable by most Pinoy teams, but now they have the chance to win even more. Sources say that Eyyou will be using his cut of TnC’s winnings to send his OFW parents home after the tournament.

While TnC may have already done the impossible, their journey is not yet over. They will be facing fellow underdogs-turned-contenders Digital Chaos, who eliminated top Chinese team LGD 2-0, on Day 4 of the Main Event (Thursday in Seattle, Friday here in the Philippines).

The brackets for The International 2016 after Day 2 of the Main Event. TnC look to continue their legendary run as they will next face Digital Chaos. Pic courtesy of Wykhrm Reddy

Stay tuned to eSports by Inquirer.net as we continue to follow TnC’s legendary run in The International 2016!

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