As the playoffs of the Dota 2 Riyadh Masters began earlier this week, it appeared inevitable fans would be treated to yet another chapter of the Team Liquid-versus-Gaimin Gladiators saga as both squads looked in unstoppable form. But thanks to a bit of SEA Dota, we’ll finally have a new LAN finalist at a major Dota event in 2023.
South-East Asian representatives Talon eliminated Gaimin on July 29 in a best-of-three that lasted well over three hours, with nearly every game going 60 minutes each. As a result, Gaimin’s incredible streak of grand final appearances comes to its end—and some fans couldn’t be happier.
Fans gathered to discuss the series on Reddit shortly following its conclusion, with one viewer going so far as to claim “pro-Dota 2 is saved” thanks to the efforts of Talon carry player Nuengnara “23savage” Teeramahanon.
Others pointed out how diverse the top three at the Riyadh Masters are when compared to this year’s Majors in Lima, Berlin, and Bali. Western Europe has all but dominated 2023 pro-Dota, but in Riyadh, the three remaining squads are all representing a different region—Western EU (Team Liquid), Eastern EU (Team Spirit), and Talon (SEA).
23savage was instrumental in Talon’s 2-1 victory, piloting his signature Terrorblade before switching up for game three with Monkey King. Talon found a way through Gaimin’s Wisp and Leshrac combination in game one but Gaimin built stronger around the duo for game two, opting to ban the support in the decider.
It would take the SEA squad all of 52 minutes to finally crack the three-straight Dota Major champions, who found themselves in the lower bracket due to a defeat to perennial rivals Team Liquid.
Liquid and Gaimin have contested all three major LAN finals for Dota in 2023 and met once more here in Riyadh’s first round of the upper bracket with Liquid finally finding a way to win. Gaimin was forced to build a lower bracket run, going through reigning TI champs Tundra, a rising Quest Esports, and a group-stage topping BetBoom Team to lock a top-four spot in Riyadh.
However, their run ends thanks to Talon, but we’re sure they won’t be too fussed by the loss. A fourth-place finish here nets Gaimin a cool $1.2 million USD—almost equalling their total 2023 prize which included the three Major trophies and two DreamLeague season victories.
Related: Riyadh Masters’ $15 million prize pool highlights major flaw with Valve’s Dota Pro Circuit
Talon will now need to defeat three-time finalists Liquid if they want to lock in a grand final meeting against Team Spirit. Spirit haven’t had the cleanest of seasons particularly on LAN, with just one top eight Major finishes from three appearances. A guaranteed grand final here marks a turning point in form for the 2021 TI champions who have already secured their spot at this year’s iteration of Dota’s pinnacle event in Seattle.
As for Liquid, it’s their last shot at a LAN title before TI after coming oh-so-close over the course of 2023. The Dota 2 Riyadh Masters final day begins at 6am CT on July 30.
