Kai breaks down SEA teams’ chances of making it to TI 2023

Road to Bali Major

Veteran Dota2 analyst Kai Manikan believes that Southeast Asian Dota2 teams may have a chance of making it big into this year’s The International or TI 2023, which will be held in Seattle, Washington in the United States this October.

Kai believes that Talon Esports has the best chance of getting the SEA region’s direct invite to TI, given their 1120 DPC Points, and ranking 1st in the region and 5th worldwide.

“Talon I would say is still consistent since the 1st tour, they still play clean and their understanding of how their drafts work is still really good. They've had a few hiccups in some games but all in all I still consider them the strongest in the region,” Kai told Rivalry in an online interview.

As of posting time, Talon ranked 4th in the DPC Division 1 Tour 3 tour, their lowest-ranked finish for this year’s DPC tours as they placed 3rd in Tour 1 and won a direct invite to the Lima Major by winning Tour 2.

Following Talon is Execration, who is at 10th place worldwide with 640 DPC points. 

Kai notes that XCTN had a rough time during Berlin Major. “March leaving as their coach and the big update greatly affected their playstyle, from being a team with a solid plan into a team that almost has no identity. But throughout the games they've been playing, it seems that they're finally finding their rhythm,” Kai said.

DPC SEA Tour 3 Teams: The Lowdown

Kai adds that other teams can still find their way to enter TI - but they’d have to make the grind real in order to reach the stage of one of esports’ most celebrated tournaments.

Kai notes that for Bleed and Blacklist Rivalry to get an invite to TI, they would need to “place high in both the 3rd tour and the upcoming Bali Major, given that they qualify.”

“Bleed has been the most improved team since Tour 2 with the help of MISERY coming in as their coach. In the previous interview, this was something that I have been wanting for SEA teams, to get some sort of Western influence be it in the form of a coach or a captain,” Kai noted.

As for Blacklist Rivalry, which finally got its own invite to a Major since its formation, Kai says,
“Blacklist has improved with the few changes they have made but their playstyle is still very slow. They're individually strong but hesitation is what prevents them from being a great team.”

Blacklist Rivalry made its own adjustments by moving Carlo “BossKu” Palad to the team captain, and adding Damien “Kpii” Chok as its new offlaner. These adjustments, including the hiring of Coach Michael “Ninjaboogie” Ross, helped steer the black-and-orange brand to its first Major tournament as a team.

Blacklist Rivalry co-owner and Tier One Entertainment CEO Tryke Gutierrez said in a Facebook post that this victory “feels a little special” due to what the team has gone through over the last two tours. “A lot has happened but technically this team has only been together for half a year. It took a lot of sacrifices but we finally got it done,” Tryke said in his Facebook post.

He adds, “[I] Can't be more excited for our first international run... Thank you sa lahat ng naniwala kahit na naging mahirap yung taon na to (Thank you for everyone who believed even if this year was difficult.)”

As for teams like Boom and Xerxia, Kai believes both are “too strong” for Division 2, but both cannot keep up in Division 1 territory. “Boom's Natsumi hasn't been playing well recently and Xerxia is getting outplayed by better teams. Xerxia drafts good but execution is poor,” Kai noted. Boom and Xerxia placed 7th and 8th in the DPC Division I Tour 3, respectively.

As for Team SMG, Kai says, “SMG has fallen off greatly. They have strong players but they just don't synergize well.” SMG placed 5th in Division I Tour 3.

As for Army Geniuses or AG, Kai says the team’s key weakness is the lack of in-game leadership. “AG badly needs someone to lead them. It seems as if they're playing pubs when you watch them, a lot of individual plays that don't work out. Their laning is quite weak, and drafting and execution isn't that good as well,” he points out.

DPC SEA Division I Tour 3: Player Standouts

Kai also commented on players that stood out for each of the teams.

Bleed Esports’ Teng Tjin “Kordan” Yao was the player to watch out for. “Kordan is someone I've been keeping my eyes on since they won the M88 Invitational and he has greatly improved since then. His hero pool is better now and plays exceptionally well as a mid laner. He's a solid space creator and possibly the best midlaner in SEA for me right now,” he notes.

Mark Anthony “Bob” Urbina from Filipino team Execration, Kai believes, is SEA’s next best midlaner. “He's super consistent and understands what his team needs and adjusts accordingly,” Kai comments.

As for Blacklist Rivalry, BossKu’s shift to the Veno support play earned top honors as Blacklist Rivalry’s best player of the season. “Kuku's change to position 5 which allows him to play Veno support is really good. I think he fits the role of a position 5. He loves to be in fights and likes playing aggressive heroes. Winning the lane as a support impacts Raven's mid game significantly which enables him to join early fights,” Kai noted.

Talon Esports’ Nuengnara “23savage” Teeramahanon was Kai’s player standout for the team, noting that the team’s playstyle revolves around his strong mechanical skills and master of the carry role. “He knows his hero timings and power spikes and utilizes them well. (23 is) still my 1st pick for best carry in SEA,” Kai said.

As for Boom, Yap Jian Wei, known in-game as xNova, made the best contributions. Kai notes that the Malaysian Dota player “has contributed a lot for Boom since his addition to the team. I guess his experience shines best during situations where you need to play for the late game where shot calling becomes much more crucial.”

As for SMG and Army Geniuses, the same comments for AG’s Indonesian player Muhammad "inYourdreaM" Rizky and SMG’s Lee Jia “CDR” He from Malaysia.

Kai notes that in his years of casting and analyzing Dota 2 games, the title still gives great thrills as a game of million possibilities. “What makes it exciting to us viewers is how unpredictable it can be. Yes we have teams who're on paper the strongest, but that doesn't automatically mean they're going to win TI,” he notes.

The Bali Major, which serves as the last Major match before TI 2023, will be held in Indonesia from June 29 to July 3, 2023, wherein teams from around the world will have a chance to fight for a $500,000 prize pool.