Welcome back to EGamersWorld.
The International 2023 continues with the group stage matches. Yes, the groups are still going on, but now they are important bo3s, the results of which determine the seeding for the play-offs.
In the second match of the second stage of the group stage of The International 2023 we will see a match between TSM and Vp. And this is the most unexpected match of the stage, as far as I am concerned.
The thing is that no one expected to see one of these two teams in the top play-offs. And someone from this pair will be there, that's the way it is.
We'll try to figure out who will be stronger and make it to the upper play-offs, and who will have to start their road to Aegis of Immortal from the lower grid of the main stage.
Let's go.
TSM Form
We open the match analysis with an analysis of TSM's form. In this match, the American club will play as favourites with odds to win at around 1.7.
The American club had a rather controversial season, but they achieved their main goal. They are at The International 2023.
Before making it to The International 2023 TSM made a good mark on the domestic scene. The club won two seasons of DPC 2023: NA Upper Division, but in the third and last season they showed a critically low performance: there TSM took the top 3, which in the current realities of the North American Dota 2 scene is not a good indicator.
There were some performances on the international scene as well, but again, very questionable. TSM attended 2 Major tournaments - Lima Major and Berlin Major - and both failed miserably. While Lima had a top-14 ranking, the German event saw the team ranked in the top-18.
In between ranking events, TSM attended commercial andVent events. Among them: DreamLeague Season 19 and DreamLeague Season 20, as well as Riyadh Masters 2023. TSM finished all three championships with essentially nothing: Top 8 at DL S19, Top 14 at DL S20 and Riyadh Masters 2023.
- TSM lineup: Timado, Bryle, Kasane, Ari, Whitemon.
Prior to the Long Sogpeg of The International 2023, TSM attended the BB Dacha LAN tournament, which became a kind of bootcamp for the participants of The International. Quite unexpectedly, the Americans managed to reach the grand finals, leaving behind such teams as 9Pandas, beastcoast and Team Secret.
In the grand finals TSM faced Gaimin Gladiators and lost. They lost 1-3, but they got the top 2, which is not bad.
In the group stage of The International 2023, TSM did surprisingly well. The team played with a score of 4-4, taking the top 2 in Basket D.
The most popular TSM heroes
Natures Prophet and Rubick appeared most often in spades. Both characters were taken 4 times each and have 100% wins.
Vengeful Spirit, Beastmaster and Tusk have appeared a similar number of times. They have won 3 matches each out of 4 appearances.
Form Vp.
We continue the match analysis by analysing the Vp's match form. In this match they will have to play as the number two, with odds to win around 2.2.
Vp have been stagnant throughout the competition year. This has been reflected in the team's performance throughout the season.
Vp finished 4th in the first season of DPC without a decent performance. They played an amorphous season, but not bad.
The second season of DPC 2023: EEU Division 1 ended the same way. The team again took 4th place and once again was one step away from getting to The Berlin Major 2023,
- Vp line-up: Kiritych, squad1x, Noticed, sayuw, Fng.
The third round of the DPC for Vp was identical to the first two. Vp again took the top 4, which, in general, can not be called a result.
Apart from the "average" positions in the DPC league, Vp played in third-party championships. For example, it was the Pinnacle Cup: Malta Vibes, where they took the top 3-4, and also at the tournaments more cool, such as Riyadh Masters 2023. The latter was the biggest event in Vp's portfolio, but the Eastern European residents did not manage anything: as a result, they finished in the top 20.
Vp got to The International 2023 through the qualifiers in Eastern Europe. In the grand finals, they outscored One Move 3-0.
The International 2023 itself is going pretty well for Vp. Being one of the main contenders for elimination from the tournament, Vp took the 4th place in Basket C, thus making it to the play-offs.
The most popular Virtus.pro characters
Disruptor remains the most popular Virtus.pro character (9 matches, 55% wins). Undying (8 matches, 50% wins) follows closely behind Thunderer.
Shadow Fiend (4 matches, 75% wins), Silencer (4 matches, 50% wins), and Lina (4 matches, 50% wins) are also VP picks.
Head-to-head history
TSM and Vp have played each other 1 time during the season. Then the teams played to a draw.
Predicted result of TSM vs Vp at The International 2023
In my opinion, we are expecting a very close match between equal teams. This is indicated by the bookmakers' odds and similar performance of the teams during the season.
The most logical result would be a full-fledged Bo3, but I will believe in a TSM victory.
Bottom line: TSM win.