A story that will be remembered as the most dominant TI run in history. Team Liquid is not the uncrowned king anymore.
It was the year 2015 when miCKe and iNsania started their Dota 2 journey together. However, it wasn't until late 2017 that they became The Alliance with Boxi, who took the Offlane role. This team was full of dreams and managed to give the "[A]" tag a new life. But they were young. Before being The International 13 winners as Team Liquid, they were the underestimated Alliance that "ruined" their TI9 run by picking Gyrocopter instead of banning it.
It was the do-or-die moment, one game and it's over. They were playing the elimination bracket against the home team, Royal Never Give up. The European draft was aiming for a fast tempo to boost a carry Faceless Void. Maybe a Gyrocopter would give back RNG the tempo they needed, and he entered the Main Stage, but on The Alliance's side. The panel roll with it, thinking they were trying an already outdated Ofllane Void. Suddenly, LaNm was laughing; iNsania grabbing his head. RNG instantly knew this was a mistake.
Loda, the team coach, tried to mask their decision on the post-draft interview. But it was over.
They lost the match, but his teammates didn’t say a word against iNsania. "This is gonna be a story to tell, boys". "It's fine, I can play it". They lost the match, but they all played it smiling until the very end. At that moment, they won a team that would work together forever.
Coincidentally enough, Blitz was sitting on that panel as an analyst, with Fogged and Cap. Maybe he saw it there; a team that had championship material. Later today, September 15, the day Liquid won TI13, the team's Founder and Co-CEO revealed that Blitz himself vouched for the ex-Alliance despite their young age.
The team evolved, and they had to change their Midlaner and Offlaner. Now, playing with 33 and Nisha, the emotional Blitz said a phrase that felt like a relieved burden. Like an immeasurable bag of stones that finally was released from his already heavy backpack. "I'm so glad that I didn't ruin Nisha's career". If anything, he saved it. What Team Secret left as an Aegis runner-up in 2022, Blitz and Team Liquid turned into a 100% win rate Puck—a TI13 champion.
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How did Team Liquid get to TI13?
For this year's format, The International 2024 had six invited teams. Despite no criteria being revealed for the selection process (a much-needed statistic since the DPC ended), Team Liquid's 2024 was filled with mixed results.
They not only carried their meme-curse of being a constant runner-up but also had to face rough results now. However, before The International started, they tested the new meta waters by traveling to Peru. Even though the Elite League is categorized as Tier 2, they still broke their curse there, finally achieving an international crown.
Team Liquid played on TI13's Group D, where they would drop one series against Team Spirit. After that, no other team beat them for the rest of the tournament. Thus, sealing a close-to-perfect run: a result not many could have expected, even after their impressive EWC run.
Team Liquid's impressive Main Event results at The International 13
As Sheever said during the last panel conversation, Team Liquid will be remembered as the most successful team in TI history. They didn't drop a single series during the Main Event. Also, this TI saw most games end with a 2-0 final score. In fact, it's the second most 2-0's we've got, with 65.52% of the games ending in a clean victory for one team. It was only surpassed by TI 2023, with 75.8% of games ending with a 2-0.
At the end of this run, they had to face the Gaimin Gladiators. Their long-time rivals, and the team that denied them the Riyadh Masters 2024 title. GG got to beat them by 2-0 at the Upper Brackets, and 3-0 during Grand Finals. The same feat that Liquid achieved against them for TI13.
But leaving statistics aside, Team Liquid's Championship is more of a tale of resilience, passion, and patience. With time, they build a team made by friendship, a story we've heard before when OG got the back-to-back TI Championship.
With this result, through sickness and deceptions, Team Liquid are your TI 2024 Champions. Michał "Nisha" Jankowski is now the best player in the world, and Neta "33" Shapira just joined the two-time club. A run that will be remembered as one of the most emotional stories in the history of esports.
