After we saw two teams eliminated from The International 2024, it was time to look to the upper bracket semi-finals.
With BetBoom Team and Aurora eliminated in the lower bracket, it was time for our attention to turn to the upper bracket at The International 2024. Four teams made their way into today’s upper bracket semi-finals, but the upper bracket finals only had room for two: Team Liquid, Gaimin Gladiators, Tundra Esports, and Cloud9.
Liquid claims another podium
First up was Liquid taking on C9, with both teams having taken a 2-0 win in their first round of playoffs – albeit the former having pulled off a huge win by sending Xtreme Gaming to the lower bracket. When it came to Game 1, it was all Liquid, from start to finish, as they looked to secure yet another guaranteed podium finish. C9 stood no chance, as they quickly went down by one. When it came to Game 2, things were vastly different, as C9 definitely found their footing, even if it took some time.
While the two teams were even in the early game, by the mid game period, Liquid had found a small lead – but it did not last long. C9 managed to make a desperate push, taking a tier 4 tower down. Unfortunately, the Liquid buybacks were ready, and as the fight turned, Roshan opened up. Even when everything seemed to be going in C9’s favour, it was a miraculous play from Michał “Nisha” Jankowski on Puck that kept Liquid’s head above water. Not long after that Liquid managed to close things out, as they made their way through into the top 3 of TI2024.
An easy win for Gaimin
Next up would be GG and Tundra, with the two teams now knowing their next challenger. Game 1 was completely one-sided, with Erik “tOfu” Engel picking up the Lone Druid and Quinn’s Storm Spirt going unkilled with 11 kills. The series was absolutely no contest at all, with Game 2 being even more one-sided than the first. It took only 24 minutes for GG to dismantle Tundra, as they cruised to a 27-3 win – with only Melchior “Seleri” Hillenkamp and Erik “tOfu” Engel dying.
With that, Day 1 of The International 2024 main event ends, as Liquid and GG meet in the upper bracket finals, with a lower bracket of C9 versus Team Falcons and Tundra taking on Xtreme Gaming on September 14th.
For more match results and updates on the go don't forget to check out our Telegram channel.