Riyadh Masters DOTA 2: RNG beats Western teams, Team Secret posts flawless record
The 2022 Riyadh Masters kicked off with a slow start. Despite this, the tournament offers an interesting variation in power balance among teams.
Following the conclusion of Day 2, Western teams were beaten heavily by Chinese powerhouse Royal Never Give Up (RNG) in Group A, and Europe’s best Team Secret have not for once conceded to their Group B contenders.
RNG has been stellar this far. The team was never defeated and even halted the advance of both Nigma Galaxy as well as OG on Day 1 — by forcing these two to a draw. On the other hand, Secret will enter Day 3 with their flawless 6-0 win-loss record over Tundra Esports, Deboosters and PSG.LGD.
About Riyadh Masters 2022
The 2022 Riyadh Masters is one of this year’s most anticipated esports events. Organized by the Saudi Esports Federation alongside Gamers8, the occasion also features other titles aside from DOTA 2, namely Rocket League, Fortnite, Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege, and PUBG MOBILE.
“The opening ceremony of Gamers8 will be a spectacular occasion, befitting a city of the imagination and ambition of Riyadh. The beginning of esports competition, a dazzling firework show, drone display and some of the biggest-name musicians in the world makes Thursday, July 14 a date for everyone’s diaries,” Saudi Esports Federation chief operations officer Ahmed Al Bishri said.
As one of the most extravagant gaming events, Riyadh Masters offers a whopping $15 million total prize pool.
RNG dominates over Western teams
Due to the pandemic restrictions, international esports fans across all games were not given the chance to see their favorite Chinese teams take on Western rivals. The last time Chinese DOTA 2 teams took control of the entire tournament from their Western counterparts was in DPC 2021-2022. This time around, RNG delivered what was due.
Both Galaxy and OG witnessed RNG’s success firsthand and early in the tournament. Both teams failed to rack in victory points over the Chinese powerhouse and had to try their luck with other contenders.
Aside from the two, RNG also dominated Team SoloMid (TSM) on Day 2. Unlike Galaxy and OG, TSM ended up losing the matchup with a margin-wide 2-0. The current Group A standings are led by Galaxy (5-3), OG (4-2), and followed by RNG (4-2).
Meanwhile, Team Liquid was eliminated following their disappointing run in this year’s Riyadh Masters. The team was unable to win any games.
Team Secret leads Group B
Unlike RNG, Secret is the star of the tournament. The team has been stealing the limelight since the start of the tournament, posting zero defeats and winning all of its matchups 2-0.
Tundra was the first to fall to RNG, followed by Saudi Arabian underdog Deboosters and most recently PSG. Sadly for Deboosters, the team was eliminated and had to wrap the tournament with 8-0.
Secret is sitting comfortably on top of Group B standings, with PSG in second place and Team Spirit in third.
Seeing how impressive both Galaxy and Secret are, it is likely that the teams will be seeded straight to the semifinals. Meanwhile, the other four will advance to the quarterfinals of the playoffs.
