After being defeated by EG, Na'Vi has lost in yet another Dreamhack. They lost against a group's runner-up, they lost though being the definite favorite.
Evil Genuises performed poorly during the group stage and had a hard time defeating 4Friends+Chrillee. The team seemed a bit frustrated, the fans already counted them out. What happened? Loda said, 4FC is just a strong team, so it was only natural EG had a hard time. Bdiz said in his interview that background noise was also an issue he did not expect. At that time however, all those were rather questionable excuses for a still poor performance.
Na'Vi on the other hand had probably the easiest group, even though Absolute Legends gave them a hard time. Dendi's Pudge eventually pulled them back up and overall Na'Vi advanced with ease. XBOCT said that they need to travel to China to be able to compete with the best, while they are currently stuck to play against "these teams." Truly so, as they have been performing very good as of late.
Friday - Na'Vi lost Game 1 against EG
Na'Vi looked strong in the beginning and gave EG a very hard time. They picked a Lich for the offlane to deny Sven as much farm as possible. On top of that, Dendi's Shadow Fiend and his Aura were supposed to work as a counter to Sven's extra armor when using Warcry. In theory, this line-up had potential to hold down a Sven and the Ukrainian's teamfight synergy made things happen. It looked to be working out, but Na'Vi didn't pressure EG enough, they didn't pressure Fear enough. Fear's BKB was really troublesome for Na'Vi, as they had nothing to counter it, but EG did. Maelk's Black Hole on the bottom lane basically decided the game. From then onward EG took over the game and let Na'Vi no chance. They dominated the teamfights and Fear eventually got a one hit ultra kill.
Na'Vi losing the first game is nothing new, as Black^ said, and plenty of other players were also convinced Na'Vi could still take it, but there was doubt. EG looked strong.
Total defeat in Game 2
Na'Vi once again gave away Sven. Once again they tried to counter him with auras, but this time around they tried it with Vengeful Spirit and Lycanthrope's Howl. In combination with Void, they opted to finally counter Sven's BKB as well. We Haz Asian showed in the group stage that Void could outcarry Sven, but could it work for Na'Vi?
EG answered with a Beastmaster, and rightfully so. His ultimate screwed up with Na'Vi and Fear's Clinkz teared Na'Vi a new one, securing EG's win over the Ukrainians.
However, it wasn't necessarily the picks that screwed Na'Vi up. They practically played an aggressive trilane with Void, Vengeful Spirit and Lycanthrope. This line-up could neither deny Clinkz his farm, nor could it kill him. EG's trilane on the other hand, with Jakiro, Beastmaster and Undying was able to dive the tower and kill LightOfHeaven's Windrunner.
Deja-Vu of TI2?
Vengeful Spirit, a weird pick, a weird laning. It brings back memories to the grand finals of The International 2012, where Puppey opted for an aggressive trilane with Nyx Assassin as a support and a direct counter to Keeper of the Light. Or when they let Naga through all the games, just to prove they could counter it.
Is this Na'Vi getting cocky again? Is this Puppey getting cocky again? New strategies are always welcome in the scene and fnatic has proven in this tournament that unorthodox picks and lanes can still work out. Yes, it is only natural for one of the strongest teams in the world to beat a strong line-up, letting Sven through.
However, isn't true strength admitting another team's strength as well? Opting to go for minus armor and eventually Howl was smart, but couldn't it have been smarter to ban Sven? EG is one of the teams that have been playing Sven in the Western scene the most, he is part of their comfort zone. Banning Dark Seer instead seems like a weird choice, as Na'Vi has proven over time again that they can deal with him.
Na'Vi fails to win DreamHack - again
This however shall not diminish the effort and performance EG put up. They have executed teamfights perfectly and bdiz as well as Maelk made things happen for their carries. They definitely proved their critics wrong.
For Na'Vi this is yet another Dreamhack they couldn't claim, but this time around they didn't even get into the prize pool spots. Knowing the players however, they'll come back stronger than ever.