Filipino stars Timothy “Tims” Randrup and Erin Jasper “Yopaj” Ferrer delivered when it mattered the most as Indonesian team Boom Esports secured a slot to The International 11 following its pulsating 2-1 victory over Team Liquid in the lower bracket of the PGL Arlington Major in the wee hours of Thursday, Aug. 11.

Boom secured at least a top 8 finish in the tournament which gave them enough DPC points to meet the current TI11 qualification threshold of 1130 points and be the first SEA representative for the crowning tournament of DOTA 2 – also the first Indonesia-based team to qualify in TI in history.

Tims, who will be making his fifth TI appearance, shrugged off the pressure and came through with a stellar Game 3 performance with a 3-5-14 line on his Tusk which paved the way to the one-sided 20-13 series clinching win.

With the TI slot on the line, Yopaj also stepped up and ran wild on his Keeper of the Light with a near-perfect 10-1-6 line while fellow Filipino Andrei “skem” Ong provided solid support with 16 assists against three deaths on his Enchantress.

With Boom and Liquid securing their comfort picks, the series opener saw a race in acquiring vital items to gain advantage in team fights. A huge clash for the Roshan proved to be the turning point as Boom emerged victorious and secured the all important objectives to take the first point of the series, 30-20.

Saeful “Fbz” Ilham showed the way in Game 1 with a 12-6-9 on the Viper while skem was an immovable force on his Chen with 20 assists against two deaths.

Liquid, though, refused to go down without a fight, pulling off a dominant 23-5 equalizer in Game 2. The team however failed to ride the momentum of the Game 2 win and seemingly lost steam in the decider.