In Western Europe, the first week of the second round of the DPC 2023 Top Division comes to an end. The last match of the day remains to be seen.
On the signings is a duel between OG and Ooredoo Thunders. Not the most high-profile event at first glance could turn out to be quite a standout encounter in the end.
Both teams are desperate for points. And in the case of OG, that's especially evident.
OG approach this matchup 0-2 in the standings. The team is solely in last place in the league and if they lose here, they run the risk of finding themselves in a critical situation.
Ooredoo Thunders, despite little experience of playing in tournaments of this ranking, are holding their own at the top of the table. The newcomers to the top division have won 1 match and lost 1.
Let's see which team can clinch the points they need and improve their standing in the standings.
Form OG
We begin the analysis with the OG's form. The team will play this game as favourites.
Despite the position in the standings, the bookmakers still trust OG. The chance of the team winning is estimated at odds around 1.5.
The case of OG in this match is quite interesting. You don't often see the team that sits in last place in the standings beaten by the pre-match odds.
OG line-up
OG's problems are plain to see and are reflected in the squad's tournament standing. It's only logical to associate them with the line-up changes that took place the day before.
OG Players
Chu's transition from the role of coach to active player has exacerbated OG's already dire situation. If last season the team looked cheerful in some places, now after 2 games there is a feeling that OG are the first candidate for relegation to the second division.
However, Chu isn't the only one dragging OG down. In fact all the players, with the possible exception of Bzm, are going through a bad period.
The team has no strategy to win, they play disjointedly in standard patterns and getting out of an acceptable rut gets lost. Such was the case in the last match.
OG performance
At DPC 2023: WEU Upper Division - Tour I OG finished 5th. The team played the regular season with a score of 4-3.
The team defeated Entity, Secret, Gaimin Gladiators and Into The Breach on their way to the top 4 and lost to Tundra, Nigma and Team Liquid. That's how they got to the re-match.
In the round-robin replay, OG played against Tundra and Entity. Both OG and Entity lost twice, which ultimately kept them out of the Lima Major 2023.
In the first match of the new round, OG's opponent was Tundra. The same Tundra that failed at Lima Major 2023 beat OG 2-0 in their first home league match, but truth be told, OG had a chance on both cards.
The next match ended identically for OG, with adjustments for chances on the two cards. Liquid needed 37 minutes in the first and 29 minutes in the second to shut down their archrivals: "Liquid" shut down Yuragi from the first card, driving them into maximum tilt, and Enigma via Guardian Greaves from DM was out of place.
OG Heroes.
The most picked character was Rubick (8 matches, 50% wins).
Also took Lina (6 games, 83% wins), Treant Protector (6 games, 50% wins), Death Prophet (6 games, 33% wins), Tiny (5 games, 80% wins), Snapfire (5 games, 40% wins).
Ooredoo Thunders uniforms
Let's move on to a breakdown of Ooredoo Thunders' form. They are predicted to be the underdog in this match and it's easy to believe that.
Bookmakers, for example, believe it. The odds of Ooredoo Thunders winning are estimated at odds in the region of 2.
It would seem that what can OG oppose ESL One champions Stockholm 2022 and ESL One Malaysia 2022 to a team that has only reached the top division of Western Europe. But the pre-match quotes can't be called fatal, as 2 to win in such a situation is quite a workable story.
Ooredoo Thunders line-up
Before the start of the tournament, the Ooredoo Thunders looked like a stable team with a very competitive lineup. Since the start of the tournament, the team has already had to make replacements within the squad.
Players of Ooredoo Thunders
- TA2000
- No! ob
- Wuiter
- OmaR
- Kaori
That's what the Ooredoo Thunders roster looks like on paper, but there have already been some changes in reality. In the match against GG, Nefrit played instead of Wuiter, who recently qualified for a close qualification for the second division of Western Europe.
Stendin fitted right in, and what happened against Gaimin Gladiators was nothing short of miraculous. More on that below.
Ooredoo Thunders' performance
Ooredoo Thunders finished first in Western Europe's second division. The team finished 6-1 on the series and 13-3 on the cards.
They managed to outscore Ancient Tribe, Alliance, Water Rune Enjoyers, IVY, Alliance and Bald Reborn 2-0. One card in Ooredoo's winning games was picked up by D2 Hustlers, while they lost to Monaspa
Apart from DPC matches, Ooredoo Thunders have been active in third-party events. The team won the local European Pro League Season 6, and finished in the top 6 at BB Universe: Episode 1 - Comics Zone.
In the first game of the new series, the Ooredoo Thunders faced a repeat of last week's Division 2 encounter. The Greeks from Monaspa beat their international counterparts 2-0.
Next up was a game against Gaimin Gladiators, and the result of that match exceeded all expectations. As total outsiders, Ooredoo Thunders not only managed to snatch a card from GG, but also outclassed them (!) into a full-blown Bo3, scoring crucial points against a disappointing start.
Ooredoo Thunders characters
The most pickable Ooredoo Thunders character is Rubick (29 matches, 86% win rate).
Clockwerk (19 matches, 73% wins), Tiny (17 matches, 82% wins), Death Prophet (17 matches, 76% wins), Treant (17 games, 70% wins) and Phoenix (17 matches, 58% wins) are popular.
History of head-to-head encounters
The teams have not previously had to play each other in official matches. The encounter in the first division of DPC 2023: WEU will be the teams' debut clash.
The outcome
This encounter has every chance of seeing a fast-paced dota with an interesting finale. Not that I believe in an OT win, but they still have a chance to continue to "surprise" and not a ghostly one.
I'm sure that Ooredoo Thunders victory against Gaimin Gladiators is more of a fluke than a pattern: a team that lost the first match to Monaspa can't consistently and easily beat the major champion. The OG themselves are another matter.
In the new cycle OG look faded: the team is losing on the map, and they lack flexibility in the drafts. If OG lose, even on a single card, it will be because of this.
Bottom line: +1.5 on the Ooredoo Thunders.
