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The underdogs to watch as we head into TI season
We take a look at the lesser known teams that could shock the world in Seattle in a few months.
With more than US$8 million already sitting in the prize pool for The International 7, and a few months left still for that figure to grow, teams are quickly trying to organise their rosters in time for the biggest event of the year.
Victory at The International could easily set up every player in a team for life financially, so getting it right is crucial. Of course all of the big names, such as Evil Geniuses, OG and most likely Virtus.Pro will go in as favourites, and we expect them to all get direct invitations. However as seems to happen every year at The International, there will probably be one or two teams wholl surprise us all. Last year we had TNC making an unbelievable run, and this year looks set to be no different.
While there are still a lot of events to go through before now and TI, this year the field is looking closer than ever. Whereas last year you could make a case for around 10 teams to get a direct invitation, this year that number looks a lot smaller, meaning we could have some very stacked qualifiers indeed. With opens and regionals set to return, this again means any team can theoretically make it to TI, which will make things very interesting.
A lack of a lot of top teams means there's a lot of mid-tier teams that could make it to TI this year who you might not know much about, so we've found some of the underdogs we think could do incredibly well for themselves over the next few months, and eventually make it to TI.
NaVi
It feels a little weird to say that NaVi are underdogs, but this season has certainly been one of their worst ever. They've been absent from almost every major LAN, they failed to make it to the Boston and Kiev Majors and they've had more roster changes than we can remember.
But just like this time last year, they are starting to show some form at the right time. Their new roster, with Per Anders Olsson 'Pajkatt' Lille as the team captain, has finally clicked and they're winning a lot of online matches.
Just this past weekend they qualified for The Summit 7, beating the likes of Team Empire, Alliance and Vega Squadron. Later this week they face Team Secret in the final of the EPICENTER qualifier; winning that would mean another high profile LAN visit for them.
Just like last year, NaVi seem to be coming good at the right time, and this roster looks to be the best in years. If they can make it to EPICENTER and put in some good performances at these LAN events, a direct invitation may even be on the cards.
SG e-Sports
When Valve announced that there would be a South American qualifier for the Kiev Major, many people assumed the team that made it through would finish in last place and most likely struggle to win a game. Then SG came along and proved the world wrong, as the Brazilian team took down Team Secret, who were undefeated, in what is probably the biggest upset in the history of professional Dota.
Since then we haven't heard much from SG, but a lot of tournaments are changing rules so that online matches are split between North and South American servers, meaning we should see the SA teams do a little better between now and TI. With SG proving they can knock off big names, and potentially more competition against NA teams, we could easily see them make it to TI through another SA qualifier, and yet again you would have to look at them as upset candidates.
Clutch Gamers
Now this is a name you probably won't have heard of. Clutch Gamers is an SEA team that has never really done anything in the way of making it to big international LAN events. But that is soon about to change, as Clutch have managed to make it to The Summit 7, The Manila Masters and EPICENTER through SEA qualifiers. They're on a roll. With teams such as Faceless, TNC, Fnatic and Mineski in those qualifiers, this is no easy feat.
The team has a few notable names, such as Khim 'Gabbi' Villafuerte and Rafael 'Rapy' Sicat Palo, who were formerly on Execration, but for the most part they are a new up and coming squad with a lot of talent.
While they shouldn't be counted out at these upcoming events, it would be a surprise to see them doing well enough to grab a direct invitation to TI. But as we saw with TNC last year, SEA teams have a habit of surprising people at the biggest event of the year, and this time around it could easily be Clutch.
Team NP
Team NP may be one of the most popular teams in the world, but that doesn't guarantee them success. While they had a great shot at making it to the Kiev Major, thanks to both DC and EG getting direct invitations, they lost out to Onyx (now DC) and roster changes ensued. Now, we haven't seen too much of their new line up, and don't really know what to expect, so into the underdog category they go.
So why have we put a team we don't know that much about into a list about teams that could do well at TI? Well that answer is simple: just look at their roster. You have a TI winner, Major winners, and some of the most consistent players of all time. FATA is one of the most underappreciated mid players in the world, and the support duo of Aui_2000 and pileliedie can rival any other duo in the world. In fact they might just be the best support duo to not win a TI.
TI success is never guaranteed, and for this new look NP even making it there isn't guaranteed, but if any team on this list can lift the Aegis of Champions in Seattle this year we have to say it would be NP.
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