Virtus.pro vs Natus Vincere
Friday, December 20 – 11:00 SGT
Virtus.pro ($1.80) secured the third seed in Group A with a 2-1-2 record. While the CIS squad failed to make noise against Alliance and Team Secret, they mustered enough energy to draw with Team Aster and win against both J.Storm and TNC Predator.
Much like their next opponents, Natus Vincere ($1.99) defeated PSG.LGD and Team Liquid, drew with ViCi, and fell short against Evil Geniuses and Gambit to finish Group B with a 2-1-2 record.
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These teams have met once since NaVi defeated Virtus.pro 2-0 at The International 2019. That was at the DreamLeague Season 13 CIS Closed Qualifier earlier this month, where NaVi produced another 2-0 win.
Neither roster has changed since then and it seems like the game updates have not affected either side’s performance, leading us to believe we can expect another win for Bakyt “Zayac” Emilzhanov and his squad.
Prediction: NaVi to win – $1.99 at GG Bet
ViCi Gaming vs TNC Predator
Friday, December 20 – 14:00 SGT
TNC Predator ($2.46) failed to impress in the group stage, where they defeated Team Aster, drew with J.Storm, and lost against Virtus.pro, Team Secret and Alliance.
ViCi ($1.53) did not enjoy the most fruitful experience in the group stage either, finishing third with a 1-3-1 record. The Chinese outfit defeated Team Liquid, lost to EG, and drew against Gambit, NaVi and PSG.LGD, earning a slightly better record than TNC.
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The most recent two meetings between ViCi and TNC Predator took place last month at the MDL Chengdu Major, where ViCi won the first brawl 2-0 but suffered a 1-3 defeat the next day.
While we cannot count on an out-of-form TNC to win here, they have enough quality to at least take a map off ViCi.
Prediction: TNC Predator +1.5 – $1.54 at GG Bet
Gambit Esports vs Evil Genuises
Friday, December 20 – 17:00 SGT
Gambit ($2.87) won their opening two fixtures against Team Liquid and NaVi, drew with ViCi, PSG.LGD and EG, and kept their wheels spinning in the playoffs with a clean sweep of Alliance to secure a spot in the upper bracket finals without dropping a single match on the way.
Evil Genuises’ ($1.41) road to the upper bracket finals was similarly straightforward. They did not have any issues topping Group B, where they defeated NaVi, PSG.LGD, Team Liquid and ViCi. EG struggled slightly against Gambit (1-1) in round four, but they made easy work of Team Secret (2-0) in the playoffs to book a rematch with Gambit.
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Besides their clash in the group stage, the most recent meeting between these two came at the EPICENTER Major in June when Gambit won 2-0. A lot has changed since, in terms of both rosters and the meta, so we can’t rank that result too highly.
That being said, we can’t disregard the fact Gambit made EG bleed in the group stage. Also, their incredible win against Alliance in round one of playoffs suggests the Russians are ready to cause problems. We will side with the underdogs to take at least one map off EG, like they did earlier this week.
Prediction: Gambit Esports +1.5 – $1.67 at GG Bet
]]>Can the underdogs make some noise?
Five of the 12 teams invited to Singapore will struggle to make an impact. Gambit Esports ($32.00), J.Storm ($30.00), Natus Vincere ($30.00), Team Aster ($28.00) and Virtus.pro ($20.00) all lack the quality required to mount a serious challenge for the title in Singapore.
Dark horses and value bets
Alliance – $17.00 at GG Bet
While in a better position compared to the five underdogs, Alliance are the longest of the outside chances for the Dota 2 World Pro title. After dropping their entire roster after an underwhelming run at The International 9, Alliance assembled a new squad from European free agents and ended up winning DreamLeague S12. While Alliance have improved since their personnel overhaul, it remains to be seen whether they can stack up with the likes of TNC, ViCi, PSG.LGD and Team Secret.
Team Liquid – $15.00 at GG Bet
When Alliance axed their roster after a 13th-16th place finish at TI9, the entire group then went on to sign for Team Liquid. As that roster fell flat last season and has failed to show any notable signs of improvement ahead of this season, it is easy to see why esports betting sites have Liquid well outside the favourites in Singapore. They might produce an upset win or two, but a genuine run at the title is not likely.
Evil Geniuses – $7.80 at GG Bet
Since their fifth-sixth place finish at TI9, EG have gone through some major roster changes. Both Gustav “s4” Magnusson and Sumail “SumaiL” Hassan have left the team , with Roman “RAMZES666” Kushnarev and Abed “Abed” Yusop replacing them. While both solid players, we don’t believe the incoming duo have had enough time to find their place in the new team. While the overhaul could benefit EG in the long run, they need more time to find the right synergy.
Favourites and best bets
ViCi Gaming – $5.00 at GG Bet
Unlike some other teams present at the tournament, ViCi Gaming have remained active since TI9. They finished fifth-sixth at ESL One Hamburg and claimed a silver medal at the MDL Chengdu Major at the end of November. While ViCi might have expected better results in those events, the fact that they have been playing while some other teams have rested gives them an advantage over the field.
TNC Predator – $4.60 at GG Bet
Like ViCi, TNC Predator did not take any time off after their underwhelming ninth-12th finish at TI9. They have claimed two titles since then, saluting at both ESL One Hamburg and the MDL Chengdu Major. Their decision to play tournaments was a smart one given Damien “kpii” Chok and Park “March” Tae-won joined the team in mid-September. Both players have fitted in well and TNC look a real threat in the 2019/20 Dota Pro Circuit season.
PSG.LGD – $4.50 at GG Bet
We are not sure what exactly to feel about PSG.LGD. They finished TI9 in third place but failed to impress in the DreamLeague S13 China open qualifiers, where they lost to FTD.ap. While they went on to win WESG China, there was little competition in the field. While PSG.LGD deserve to sit among the favourites, they still have a lot to prove – especially considering they lost their captain, Xu “fy” Linsen, after TI.
Team Secret – $4.40 at GG Bet
Team Secret enter the tournament as the outright favourites, yet they have not played a competitive event since The International besides DreamLeague S13 Europe closed qualifiers. While TNC and ViCi have both put in work to get ready, Secret have failed to do the same. Momentum can take you far and entering the tournament cold won’t do them any good.
Dota 2 World Pro Invitational betting prediction
TNC Predator to win – $4.60 at GG Bet
]]>The Singaporean MMA promotor has hired the former Battlefly chief business officer Carlos Alimurung CEO of ONE Esports. Alimurung was also a high-ranking executive at LG North America and Univision.
As revealed in a LinkedIn post by the company’s co-founder Chatri Sityodtong, ONE Championship has also partnered with PGL. The Romanian production company has an impressive track record of hosting Dota 2 esports events, including the Manila Major 2016, Boston Major 2016, Kyiv Major 2017 and China Dota2 Supermajor.
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ONE Esports will kick off at ONE Championship’s 100th event in Tokyo on October 5-6, where two fighting games are set to take stage. First on the schedule is the ONE Tekken Tokyo Invitational, followed by the ONE Street Fighter Tokyo Challenge.
Later in the year, the ONE Dota 2 Singapore World Pro Invitational will kick off at Singapore Indoor Stadium on December 20 and conclude two days later on December 22. After that, we will have to wait more than three months for the ONE Dota 2 Jakarta World Pro Invitational event, which will be held at the Indonesia Convention Exhibition from April 17-19.
Only basic details have been released regarding the two events. Both will feature 12 of the best Dota 2 teams from all around the globe and a US $500,000 prize pool, but teams, format and schedule are yet to be announced.
Tekken, Street Fighter and two Dota 2 World Pro Invitationals are the only four events on the schedule for ONE Esports, but the organization is already making plans for the future and has locked in a $50 million investment for further development and expansion.
The revolutionary event will take place in Singapore under the twin banners of the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) and the National Youth Council (NYC).
Riot Games is the developer behind League of Legends – one of the world’s most popular esports games. The Hyperplay tournament will feature 10 of the top LoL teams from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
While Riot takes care of the gaming, MTV is bringing some of the world’s biggest musical artists to Singapore. Those who cannot attend the festival in person can enjoy the action via live stream.
This is not the first time Riot has integrated music and esports. Every year, the developer selects a new artist to create the official song for the LoL World Championship. The chosen artist also has the honor of performing the song live at the final.
The lineup and ticket prices for Hyperplay are yet to be announced. Check the official website (hyperplay.mtvasia.com) for further updates.
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