T1 hands Boom Esports first loss for share of Div. I lead


T1 doused the red-hot Boom Esports as it ended its five-game winning run with a dominant 2-0 sweep to get the share of the DPC SEA Winter Tour Division I top spot on Saturday, Jan. 15.

Photo from T1

Anticipated to be a tight contest, T1 owned the spotlight and showed no mercy as it handed Boom its first taste of defeat in the tournament. The two squads now have an identical 5-1 win-loss record and a share of the top of the standing with the tilt now heading into its final stretch.

Thai player Nuengnara “23Savage” Teeramahanon was unstoppable in the two-game sweep as he led T1’s romp of its rivals with a 9-2-12 line on his Terrorblade in Game 1 before following it up with a 18-0-14 explosion in Game 2.

Filipino player Carlo “Kuku” Palad dictated the tempo in the series opener win with a 4-4-18 KDA on his Wraith King as the The International 10 SEA representatives stunned Boom with a 28-22 Game 1 win.

T1 showed no let up in second game as it thoroughly broke the spirits of Boom Esports with a textbook performance to close out the series. Game 2 was a total stomp with T1 taking a wire-to-wire 52-11 Game 2 win.

T1 will face Fnatic next and a win could mean a possible top 1 finish along with 300 DPC points and $30,000 top prize.

That would be easier said than done though as Fnatic was also coming off a rousing victory against Execration. Likewise, the two-game sweep was a total annihilation as Fnatic clobbered Exe in the opening game, 41-11.

Execration tried to regain some foot hold in the second game, putting up a better fight but Fnatic was just too much as it cruised to another easy 31-15 triumph.

Fnatic now sits at the fourth spot in the standing with a possible win against T1 and a Boom Esports loss to Execration could force a four-way tie in the standings.