South America had the chance of being represented by four teams at The International 2023, but after two days of group stage matches one team is already eliminated.
Thunder Awaken made it to Seattle this year through South America regional qualifiers. The SA region received two qualifier slots this year and Thunder Awaken was the second team in the regional battle to secure a spot at the most important tournament of the year.
Thunder Awaken places last in Group B at TI12
Once they arrived in Seattle, TA was seeded based on Dota Pro Circuit points in Group B which is regarded as the toughest to be on, and struggled to right from the get-go. They lost two series on the first day of matches and landed a draw score against Shopify Rebellion, which kept the hope somewhat alive.
However, on the second day of group play, Thunder Awaken needed a positive score against Team Liquid, which is one of the big favourites at the title this year. They lost the first game and despite impressive efforts to even the series, they still felt shot.
The 0-2 score against Liquid ensures that the Western European outfit will be heading into the second phase of the group stage as the top team in Group B and will have the advantage of choosing their opponent for the playoffs seeding match between the 3rd and 4th placed teams in Group A.
TI12 Group B
Thunder Awaken are heading back home with an overall 1-7 game record in Seattle after just two days of matches, leaving beastcoast, Evil Geniuses and Keyd Stars to fight for a spot in the playoffs. Unfortunately, it is unclear if Thunder Awaken will receive any prize pool money for their effort as Valve is yet to reveal the prize pool distribution for this year’s The International.
