Team Liquid beats XERXIA in a three-game slogfest
After a 2-1 victory over XERXIA in a VALORANT epic, Team Liquid became the first team from Group B to qualify for the VCT Masters Reykjavik playoffs, where The Guard, G2 Esports, Paper Rex, and LOUD are waiting.
Liquid is making the most of its Masters Reykjavik 2022 appearance. Despite failing to be qualified for Stage 1 Masters, Liquid is now representing EMEA in replacement of FunPlus Phoenix, who was unable to go due to travel limitations.
Despite this, Liquid has demonstrated their ability to compete with back-to-back victories over KRÜ Esports and XERXIA. They are the first club from Group B to qualify for the playoffs as a result of their victories. They will be the fifth of eight teams contending for the Masters’ championship, joining The Guard, G2 Esports, Paper Rex, and LOUD.
Xerxia’s Past Record
XERXIA Esports, on the other hand, is in a similar situation. They qualified normally, although APAC area teams have yet to achieve significant success in international events.
The greatest XERXIA had was a Champions 2021 triumph over Team Envy, which was a huge shock in the competition. International fans are now watching XERXIA to see if it was a fluke or a harbinger of things to come.
But, thus far, XERXIA has held their own against everyone they’ve faced at Masters 1. With the departure of famous duelist Patiphan “Patiphan” Chaiwong, Thanachart “Surf” Rungapajaratkul is a perfect successor.
The squad appears to be pretty similar to how they were at Champions in 2021, with aggressive offensive and defensive pushes.
Highlight of the Match
Liquid began the first map versus XERXIA with their map selection of Split. Liquid demonstrated why Split has been one of the stronger maps in their rotation by defeating XERXIA 13-7.
The two teams were level at 6-6 at the break, and XERXIA won the opening pistol round before Liquid completely dominated in the second half, winning seven straight rounds.
Liquid began to waver on XERXIA’s map choice of Icebox, which went the extra mile. Another 6-6 deadlock at the interval enabled the score to shift to either team’s advantage. While Liquid won the first four pistol rounds, XERXIA was able to string together four rounds of wins to bring things together before winning the game on 13-11.
The series’ final map would be Ascent, the same map on which Liquid upset KRÜ Esports to advance in the bracket. Despite XERXIA holding a 7-5 lead at the half, Liquid came back to take the lead by winning numerous rounds in a row. However, Liquid was unable to maintain its lead as XERXIA forced the match into overtime.
Yesterday, Liquid won overtime 16-14 over KRÜ on Ascent, and today, they won overtime 17-15 versus XERXIA.
Preparing for the next game
After winning the match, Liquid’s Travis “L1NK” Mendoza told Dexerto in a post-match interview that they had made careful not to underestimate their Thai opponents.
“OpTic Gaming didn’t give XERXIA the respect they deserved, so they were caught off guard,” Said L1NK. “We watched XERXIA play against OpTic and realized they’re very good. They’re from a different region, but that doesn’t mean you can’t respect them.”
The liquid will resume their Masters Reykjavik 2022 tournament at the playoffs on April 15. Meanwhile, on April 14, XERXIA Esports will face the victor of OpTic Gaming vs. KRU Esports at 12:30 a.m. GMT+8 | April 13, 9:30 a.m. PDT | April 13, 4:30 p.m. GMT in a decisive match to determine who gets the last playoff position from Group B.
