SA Qualifiers Day 1: Zero Upsets Today
The South American qualifiers have begun, and teams will compete for two slots at The International. Here's a recap of what happened on Day 1.
Thunder Awaken 2-0 Balrogs Esports
Thunder Awaken are heavy favorites in this qualifier, and their first opponent, Balrogs Esports, didn't pose much of a threat. TA won both games in a little over 30 minutes with almost no issues.
Thunder Awaken moves on in the Upper Bracket, while Balrogs must make a Lower Bracket run.
Keyd Stars 2-0 Mad Kings
Keyd Stars is another competitor to book their flights to TI, and their opponents today, Mad Kings, were no pushovers. Still, Keyd Stars could win the series convincingly in a 2-0 fashion.
Game 1 wasn't close, but Game 2 required a Divine Rapier from Costabile to end the game—still, a strong performance from the Keyd Stars side.
Acatsuki 2-0 Infamous
The Acatsuki stack is filled with notable players, including Leostyle and Kotaro. Their opponents today were Infamous, a decent team. Acatsuki pulled through and demolished Infamous as the series' favourites, ending both games in 20 and 22 minutes—total domination.
Infinity Esports 2-0 Universitario Esports
The final series of the day was between Infinity Esports and Universitario Esports. Infinity was heavily favored in the series, and the odds didn't lie. Though it took them a while in both games, Infinity could cross the finish line and win both to end the series 2-0.
Updated Bracket
The results of today's matches have developed this bracket:
Day 2 will feature Lower Bracket matches, where eliminations will begin.