ESL One Kuala Lumpur 2023: Western Europe Closed Qualifier kicks off. Eight teams from Western Europe, who did not receive direct invitations to the tournament from ESL, will compete in the closed qualifier for two slots in the main stage of the event. Team Liquid will play against D2 Hustlers in the quarter-finals of the top grid. The format of the match is bo3. Will Liquid manage not to lose a single map in the series? We will find out very soon.
In this betting thread you will find out how the participants of this match perform in the course of the current year, how they spent their previous professional tournament, as well as how this match will end.
Team Liquid uniforms
Western European esports club Team Liquid are having a great season of play, except for the fact that on the international stage Insania and its teammates are systematically stumbling away from victory. Their main and only opponent this year is Team Gaimin Gladiators. Liquid started the year with a first place finish at DPC WEU 2023 Tour 1: Division I and $30,000. This earned the players a trip to Lima Major 2023, where they reached the finals and won silver, bringing in $100,000 in prize money. In the next round of the DPC 2023 ranking season, Team Liquid once again won the Western Europe Division 1 and earned another $30,000. Before travelling to Berlin to participate in ESL One Berlin Major 2023, Insania and his teammates played in the first tournament of the ESL Pro Tour Dota 2 2023 series, namely DreamLeague Season 19. The team successfully took second place, Ledgeiv Gaimin Gladiators in an intense final with a score of 2:3. The players were rewarded with $175,000 in prize money. At the Major tournament in Berlin, Team Liquid once again won the silver medal and received valuable DPC points and $100,000. At the DPC WEU 2023 Tour 3: Division I, the team lost some ground and finished in fourth place in the standings. However, that was good enough for a trip to Bali Major 2023. The only failure this year for Insania and the team was a 15th-16th place finish at DreamLeague Season 20, which earned them a $10,000 consolation prize. Silver at Bali Major 2023 with another grand final against Gaimin Gladiators earned $100,000. The European club also competed at the Riyadh Masters 2023 where they finished in second place and earned $2,500,000 in prize money. DreamLeague Season 21 finished in 9th-10th place for the team and brought in $30,000.
The previous professional tournament for Team Liquid was The International 2023. As a result of the draw, Insania and the team were placed in Group B. A 3-1-0 result secured the team's first place in the group and their advancement to Phase Two, where they faced Evil Geniuses. After defeating Arteezy and team 2-0, Liquid travelled to the top set of play-offs. In the quarter-finals, Team Liquid defeated Talon Esports on two maps in a row, followed by Ledge and Team Spirit in a full bo3 series. Thus the team fell to the bottom set of play-offs. A 1:2 loss to Gaimin Gladiators ended Liquid's participation in the Dota 2 World Championship. A 5th-6th place finish in the standings secured $106,363 in prize money for the players.
After the end of the season, zai announced a break in his professional career, and he was replaced by 33 on Team Liquid. In ESL One Kuala Lumpur 2023: Western Europe Closed Qualifier the team received a direct invitation from the organisers.
Team Liquid's recent results stats:
- A 1:2 loss to Gaimin Gladiators
- 1:2 loss to Team Spirit
- 2-0 win over Talon Esports
- 2:0 win over Evil Geniuses
- 2:0 win over Thunder Awaken
D2 Hustlers uniform
D2 Hustlers have gone through several metamorphoses this year. Firstly, the squad finished in fourth place at European Pro League Season 6, received $1,000 and disbanded. The new squad was introduced just before the Long Song DPC WEU 2023 Tour 1: Division II, where the team also finished in the top 4 and earned $11,000 as a reward. A 5th-8th place finish at Pinnacle Cup: Malta Vibes #1 provided the players with $2,000. The D2 Hustlers' biggest achievement so far is a silver medal at the DPC WEU 2023 Tour 2: Division II, where they finished 5-2. The team earned $16,000 and a trip to Division I. A silver medal in the European Pro League Season 8 earned D2 Hustlers $2,500. The miracle in DPC WEU 2023 Tour 3: Division I didn't happen, the team finished 2-5 and dropped to the second division, finishing seventh in the standings. After that the team was signed by Luna Galaxy and until the second half of October D2 Hustlers disappeared from the professional scene. On the 21st of October the squad returns under the same name. Victory at the European Pro League Season 13 brought the players the championship and $5,000 in prize money.
D2 Hustlers made it to ESL One Kuala Lumpur 2023: Western Europe Closed Qualifier thanks to their participation in the open qualifiers. There they first got into the top-16 without any difficulties. Then the team defeated Polish-Belarusian mix KKKrakow, after which they defeated Team Arava. In the decisive match D2 Hustlers fought with Ukrainian club B8. The victory on two maps sent Shad and his teammates to the closed stage of the qualifiers.
Statistics of the last result of D2 Hustlers:
- Victory over B8 with a score of 2:0
- Victory over Team Arava 1:0
- Victory over KKKrakow 1:0
- 3:0 win over Team Klee
- 2:1 win over Level UP
Match History of Team Liquid vs D2 Hustlers
Previously, the participants of this match have not crossed paths on the professional Dota 2 scene.
Predicted result of the match Team Liquid - D2 Hustlers
Even with the replacement of one Liquid player, the difference in the strength of these two teams is too big. Let's bet on a 2-0 win for Team Liquid.
