PARI Universe day two: GamerLegion stun Team Liquid as Astra Invicta upset BetBoom

Day two of PARI Universe went very differently from day one. On the opening day of the US$250,000 Dota 2 tournament, every favourite won 2-0. On Friday, 23 October, GamerLegion beat a Team Liquid side playing with a stand-in, Astra Invicta swept BetBoom Team, and OG picked up their first win against 1w Team.

GamerLegion take advantage of Liquid's stand-in

Liquid were without Michael "miCKe" Vu on Friday. Organisers had announced the day before that former Nigma Galaxy carry Denis "rincyq" Bogushev would stand in, and no reason for the change was given. It is also new mid laner Stanislav "Malr1ne" Potorak's first event with the team.

GamerLegion won both long games. Game 1 lasted 53 minutes and ended 45-30 on kills. Game 2 went 71 minutes and finished 48-34. Liquid had started the event with a 2-0 win over 1w Team, so Group A is now much more open.

Astra Invicta's first win

In Group B, Astra Invicta recovered from their opening-day loss to PARIVISION by beating BetBoom Team 2-0 in BetBoom's first match of the tournament. Strafe's pre-match poll had almost 79% of users picking BetBoom. Astra won Game 1 in about 40 minutes. Game 2 lasted 59 minutes and included a Lone Druid against Broodmother matchup.

Offstage reported that Astra's Nightfall died only once in the whole series. He went 12/1/10 on Lifestealer and 9/0/14 on Lone Druid.

OG off the mark

OG started their campaign by beating 1w Team 2-0 in the day's first match. 1w Team have now lost both of their series. PARIVISION against LEGION closed the day. LEGION announced Alik "V-Tune" Vorobei as a stand-in for Mikhail "Darklord^" Blinov in that match, their second roster change of the event. That result had not been confirmed when this article was written.

Format and what's next

The ten teams are split into two groups of five, and each group is a single round-robin of best-of-three series. The top four in each group go into a double-elimination playoff, and the bottom team in each group is eliminated. The playoffs run from 28 October, and the grand final is on 1 November.

Saturday's schedule in Malaysia time (MYT, UTC+8):

• 4pm: 1w Team vs GamerLegion (Group A)
• 7pm: Team Yandex vs OG (Group A)
• 10pm: Team Spirit vs BetBoom Team (Group B)
• 1am Sunday: Astra Invicta vs LEGION (Group B)

Fans can watch on FISSURE's YouTube and Kick channels.

Key takeaways

• GamerLegion beat Team Liquid 2-0 in two long games. Liquid played with rincyq in place of miCKe.
• Astra Invicta swept BetBoom Team 2-0, with Nightfall dying only once across the series.
• OG beat 1w Team 2-0, leaving 1w without a win after two series.
• The top four in each group reach the playoffs, which start on 28 October.

FAQ

Why did Team Liquid play without miCKe? The organisers announced that rincyq would temporarily replace miCKe at PARI Universe. No reason was given for the change.

How many teams are eliminated in the PARI Universe group stage? Two. The fifth-placed team in each five-team group is knocked out, and the other eight go into the double-elimination playoff.

How much is the PARI Universe prize pool? The prize pool is US$250,000, and Offstage reports that US$125,000 goes to the winner. The grand final is on 1 November.

Sources: Offstage, Strafe, Dot Esports, esports.gg, Hawk Live