Dota 2: China Tour 3 Division I Overview – Week 4

After three weeks of action, Tour 3 in all regions is slowly coming to an end. We have a few more weeks ahead of us, but we can already see which teams stand out.

With that being said, China is one of the most interesting regions right now because we have five teams capable of securing a slot for the PGL Arlington Major 2022. Three of them have better results, whereas everyone else is neck and neck. That’s why the fourth week was even more exciting to watch.

We had a couple of top-rated series this week, so let’s go over each one.

Xtreme Gaming vs DEC

The first match was between Xtreme Gaming and Dandelion Esports Club and it was very important for Zhang “Paparazi灬” Chengjun and the rest. The team had to win this match in order to keep its chances of securing a slot for the Major. Luckily, Paparzi and co. won the match after two epic games, each of which lasted 40 minutes.

The first game of the match was more interesting than we expected. We thought that DEC would dominate in the laning stage because their draft allowed them to do more damage early on. However, Xtreme Gaming didn’t let its opponents take advantage of it and even got a slight lead.

Both teams were close in terms of kills and net worth until the 30th-minute mark. Although DEC’s Bristile was the strongest hero in the game, even he was not powerful enough to withstand the Spectre and Puck combo. To make matters worse, Xtreme Gaming had Enigma and Black Hole. This was enough for the Chinese to win the first match.

Game 2

After losing the first game, DEC changed their draft and picked some of the hottest meta heroes right now. On the other hand, Xtreme Gaming relied on its Ursa but also got Pudge and Alchemist. The latter was in the support position so that he could help Pudge snowball.

Things looked good for Tang “shylock” Kaiwen and the rest because their TA kept getting stronger. Despite dealing tons of damage, this hero could not carry her team to victory. There was a point in the game where DEC had the chance to win, but Pudge and Ursa became too strong, even for the right-click damage dealer.

Vici Gaming vs Dandelion Esports Club

After Dandelion’s inability to defeat Xtreme Gaming, the team had another tough challenge ahead of them. This time, the Chinese squad had to go up against none other than Vici Gaming. Needless to say, this series was intense.

Game 1

Vici Gaming is one of the few teams still trying to get used to the current meta, and game one proved it. Zhou “Yang” Haiyang and the rest had to play against the deadly Zeus and Bristleback combo that has proven itself several times. 

Instead of picking a hero that can deal with Bristle, Vici chose to focus on something that would allow them to prevail and win. Sadly, things did not go well because the Chinese squad lost the laning stage. This allowed Zeus and Bristle to snowball and gave DEC the first win.

Game 2

Vici was not happy after losing the first match against a team they should have no problem with. That’s why the team got Morphling and Razor for the second map. The good laning stage allowed both heroes to show everything they’re capable of and win the game for their team in just 30 minutes.

DEC had a few moments where the team could have bounced back, but this did not happen. Yang and the rest did not allow their opponents to steal their lead and played almost flawlessly. This allowed them to equalize the series and accumulate enough confidence for game 3.

Game 3

In an attempt to win the series, DEC rolled out their Enigma and Venomancer combo, something they’ve used before. Sadly, this tactic did not pay off because Vici Gaming was ready for it.

Yang and the rest countered their opponents by going for the classic MK and BM combo that has recently become popular. These two heroes had a flawless laning stage that led to multiple kills. Vici’s supports roamed every lane and gave their opponents no chances of succeeding. As a result, Vici won the match in just 18 minutes.

PSG.LGD vs Xtreme Gaming

It is safe to say that this was one of the most anticipated series in the Chinese DPC. Even though many experts thought that PSG.LGD is undefeatable, the last couple of weeks have shown this is not the case. 

After losing a couple of matches, others took full advantage of the situation and gained a solid edge. One of the teams that are among the main favorites for the Major slot is Xtreme Gaming. The latter won most of its matches but has yet to face its biggest challenge.

Even though we expected this series to be close and provide us with tons of action, the reality was different. Instead of showing everything they offer, PSG.LGD failed to utilize their draft. As a result, Zhao “Yds.” Jiayi and the rest took full advantage of the situation and won.

Game 1

PSG decided to use the classic TB draft with Void Spirit for the series' first game. Even though the team usually achieves impressive results with those heroes, Xtreme Gaming was prepared. Yds and the rest picked Huskar, Trent, and Enigma, three heroes they use in tricky situations.

As you can probably guess, Huskar is notorious for his early and mid-game dominance. Therefore, it shouldn’t be surprising that Xtreme Gaming had no problems gaining a solid lead. PSG tried to provide their TB with the needed time to bounce back, but this never happened, and game one went in favor of Xtreme Gaming.

Game 2

Game two was a lot more intriguing than the first one because both teams had good drafts. PSG used one of the top combos from several years ago – Spectre and Zeus.  The two heroes are notorious for their global presence and damage output. However, even this was not enough to bring down Zhang “Paparazi灬” Chengjun’s TB.

Xtreme Gaming played slowly so that their cores had enough time to become strong. In the end, even the Earthshaker counter pick was unable to stop the deadly Chinese team. This victory gives them second place in Division I, at least for now.