The International 2023 - China Qualifier or the old men in the fight: what to expect from the TI qualifiers in China
Yuriy SheremetThe Dota 2 professional season is rushing towards The International 2023 - the main event in Dota 2 in 2023, and maybe even in the whole Esports. In just a few days, the first stage of the final tournament of the season will begin, namely the closing qualifiers in six regions.
Teams from China will be the first to fight for a ticket to The International 2023. The International 2023 - China Qualifier matches will start already on the 17th of August.
We are looking forward to the games, so we decided to talk about the Chinese qualifiers. I am sure that the qualifiers in China will be one of the most exciting events of The International.
The main things about The International 2023 - China Qualifier: list of participants, format, dates of the event
This year, the Chinese region looks weaker than ever. It's hard to recall a more disappointing season for the residents of the once top-1 region in the competitive world of Dota 2.
The poor performance has entailed a cut in slots for the Chinese region. In 2023, only 1 team will qualify for The International 2023. The International 2023 - China Qualifier starring:
- Team Aster
- Azure Ray
- Invictus Gaming
- Xtreme Gaming
- Aster.Aries
- Holy Grail
- Team Zero
- Team Birght
- The Last Dark
- Big brain
- Supernova
- Team Disillusion
- IG.Vitality
- Limit
The list is certainly impressive. There is everything for a real meat grinder: 14 teams, 1 slot and a lot of nyms. And then there's the format. It is still unknown whether it will change this year, but if everything will be the same as it was in 2022, then we are waiting for Double-Elimination with Bo3 matches until the grand finals, and then - a match for the exit to The International 2023.
To summarise, we get: 14 teams, Double-Elimination from 17 to 21 August. Sounds cheerful, of course, but in reality things can be much sadder.
China is no longer a competitive region and that's worth accepting.
The International 2023 - China Qualifier is an easy walk for Team Aster
Among the 14 teams, Team Aster clearly stands out. The titular Chinese club looks superfluous in this celebration of life.
Aster were one of the two Chinese teams with hope in the 2023 season. And if PSG.LGD made it to The International 2023, it is logical to assume that Aster will keep them company after the regional qualifiers.
Consider this: Aster are ranked 16th in the DPC table with 486 points in their pocket, Aster have attended three Major tournaments where 2 times they finished in the top 8 and one time they finished in the top 12. At least for the current China, this looks decent.
However, there are still doubts about Team Aster's success. Before qualifying for The International 2023, the main favourite has swapped BoBoka for Kaka, which doesn't look bad, but it will still affect the level of play no matter what. Especially considering the roster situation of a few other contenders.
Swan Song Maybe: The International 2023 - China Qualifier is the last chance for the legendary mid laner to make it to The International
China has dramatically become one of the oldest regions, with few caveats. There are the same PSG.LGD who have refreshed their line-up and made it to The International, but the rest of the "big players" have long been in the shadow of their past. A prime example is Azure Ray.
Azure Ray appeared spontaneously and also spontaneously broke into the race for a place under the sun. However, frankly speaking, it was foolish to expect any other outcome. Considering the competitiveness of the current China, which became the late game motive of this material, it was hard to fail at Azure Ray's place. Not when you have a trio from the "golden lineup" of PSG.LGD.
Somnus, aka Maybe, fy and Chalice have come together once again to play on the main stage of Dota 2 once again. The desire, I'm sure, is huge as it's impossible to forget all the drama of these three players.
Azure Ray had little time to go straight through: they only played at Bali Major 2023, where they made it to the top 8. After gaining 400 DPC points they went to play the qualifiers, where they were the main obstacle for Aster. However, Xtreme Gaming will also fight for this "title".
When stardom didn't play: will Xtreme be able to show their game at The International 2023 - China Qualifier?
Since Xtreme Gaming appeared on the competitive radar in 2021, the club has been a constant rumour. It was the perfect fit for the description of a "super team", but unfortunately it has only remained so on paper.
Throughout the club's existence, different squads have failed to produce any meaningful results. All that Xtreme can boast of are victories in the regional DPC league, but no more than that. But here play top players of Dy, XinQ, Xm, and until recently Paparazzi. The latter, by the way, is a real QThe International essence of the club. The legendary Chinese player and one of the most talented performers in the world got so "smoked" in Xtreme that he simply finished his career. He seems to have absolutely no faith in Xtreme's short-term success at these qualifiers, let alone the team's future prospects.
Xtreme is a living corpse. Sorry, but as it stands. The International 2023 - China Qualifier stunts the team's final test and it's do or die here. I'm leaning towards the second option.
However, it's still too early to bury the "super-team". If we manage to beat Aster and Azure Ray, we have a good chance to make it through a few more series at The International 2023.
What's the bottom line?
The International 2023 - China Qualifier should be a spectacle despite all of the above. Enough of the fact that it's essentially part of the main tournament of the year and we'll get to see another TI 2023 participant play in Seattle at these qualifiers is enough to keep us excited.
Stay tuned along with EGamersWorld. There's a lot of The International heretics ahead.
Yuriy Sheremet – Expert in mobile gaming and esports among shooters and MOBA games.
At EGamersWorld, Yuriy, as in 2020 when he joined the portal, works with content, albeit with adjustments to his area of responsibility.