MVP Phoenix have continued their dominant performance at the Shanghai major, dispatching LGD Gaming in a swift and decisive 2-0 set.
Both games were over in under 30 minutes with MVP Phoenix mixing up their draft to demonstrate a more well-rounded style of Dota while still maintaining their hallmark early game control. The Shanghai Major’s signature pauses continued across both matches, but the action got back underway quickly and MVP firmly took control.
Game One:
Game one saw MVP Phoenix begin to mix-up their traditional drafting-style on both the picks and bans. No longer reserving their bans for to counter push-strategies as has been the way for most of the tournament, MVP Phoenix constructed an incredibly flexible and high DPS draft. LGD Gaming, on the other hand, were forced into an incredibly passive, farm-heavy style of drafting which left them with minimal early game impact. This became evident in the early game as MVP Phoenix’s incredible flexibility allowed them to turn on Maybe on the mid-Razor time and time again. LGD tried to fight back with some attempted smoke ganks, but were simply unable to find the initiations they needed with Chen. MVP Phoenix picked-off the Tide before twenty minutes and immediately transitioned into an early Rosh play which LGD couldn’t contest. With Aegis in-hand MVP Phoenix went for a 4-1 split push tactic and took LGD’s top Rax by the twenty-minute mark, followed by the game at twenty-three.
Game Two:
Game two saw LGD clawing back some ground in the drafting stage, picking up MMY’s Earth Spirit and the Lone Druid for Sylar, while MVP were able to enter the field with a destructive IO-Bristle combo. The early-game for LGD seemed to be going their way with multiple pickoffs in mid thanks to QO getting turned around on by Sylar and MMY. However, the IO-Bristle combo in bottom-lane was finding dominant farm with Febby demonstrating some next-level tether pulls and simultaneous ancient stacks on the Dire off-lane. MVP Phoenix moved into the Rosh pit early with their heavy negative-armour focus and were able to secure the Aegis before 20th minute. From this point, MVP seemed to simply outplay LGD in team-fight after team-fight. MVP used their signature face-rush style of Dota, but in a more refined fashion; engaging LGD and picking off a single key target before disengaging for 3-4 seconds, healing up, and then suddenly re-engaging over and over again. LGD lost 3 team-fights straight and two lanes of Rax before MVP finally over-extended under LGD’s tier four towers. Despite this misplay, MVP were able to quickly regroup and push through the final lane of Rax top and force the GG by twenty-seven minutes.
So What does everyone think… Is this new style of continuous hyper-aggression coming from MVP something new that the Korean titans are bringing to the game? Could we be witnessing the waking of the e-sports giant that is Korea, as MVP cement themselves as a genuine tier-one team? Let us know in the comments below.
