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BOOM Esports in danger of early elimination from TI11 after 0-2 loss to Soniqs

BOOM Esports are in real danger of getting eliminated early from The International 11 after they lost a crucial Group Stage match to Soniqs Esports. (Photo: BOOM Esports)
BOOM Esports are in real danger of getting eliminated early from The International 11 after they lost a crucial Group Stage match to Soniqs Esports. (Photo: BOOM Esports)

Southeast Asian hopefuls BOOM Esports are now in very real danger of getting eliminated early from The International 11 (TI11) Group Stage after they suffered a crucial 0-2 loss to North America's Soniqs Esports.

BOOM, Soniqs, and BetBoom Team were the three teams in Group A fighting to avoid elimination from TI11's Group Stage after Day 2.

BOOM entered Day 3 with a 3-7 record and have already drawn 1-1 with BetBoom, meaning they needed to win against Soniqs to avoid elimination.

Ill-suited picks plague BOOM's draft in game one

Soniqs kicked off their crucial match against BOOM with a draft that focused heavily on teamfights and zoning enemies out.

With Undying's Tombstone, Enigma's Black Hole, and Monkey King's Wukong, it was near impossible to approach the North American squad. Quinn "Quinn" Callahan's Sniper was another major headache BOOM would have to deal with.

Meawhile, BOOM's draft focused on disrupting the team fight coming out from Soniqs. Andrei "skem" Ong's Silencer and Timothy "Tims" Randrup's Tusk were the best support picks in that situation.

However Puck and Shadow Fiend were ill-suited to take on the Soniqs draft head-on.

The lanes went perfectly for Soniqs, as they came out ahead in all of them. Mid in particular went well for the team, as Quinn was able to nearly double Erin "Yopaj" Ferrer's networth in the early game.

The networth deficit made it nearly impossible for BOOM to take fights early on.

Soniqs continued to exert pressure across the map, getting seven unanswered kills in the first 15 minutes as well as the first Aegis of the game.

Only Souliya "JaCkky" Khoomphetsavong was able to farm on BOOM, as the rest of the squad fell further and further behind.

It took BOOM 20 minutes to get their first kill of the game. It cost them a Global Silence, a map-long chase, a buyback on Tims, and the only kill they got was on Soniqs' position 5 support Adrian "Fata" Trinks.

Even with a numerical advantage and using a Smoke of Deceit, BOOM still lost the fight and the game at the 30-minute mark. The Southeast Asian team were heavily outdrafted and losing the laning stage sealed the deal for them.

Stronger mid game draft for game two for BOOM

BOOM's draft in game two featured a far stronger mid game and stronger lanes, courtesy of Skem's Disruptor.

The unusual choice was to see an offlane Phoenix for Saieful "Fbz" Ilham. It was a bit of a head-scratcher to see the normally aggressive Fbz play a more positioning and spell-focused hero.

Soniqs goal in game two was to delay the enemy until Yawar "YawaR" Hassan came online with Morphling. Quinn's Invoker and Fata's Elder Titan were the perfect two picks to give the team space and allow them to mount a comeback if things go sour early.

Yopaj had a much better time on the mid lane this time, even getting a kill on Quinn and forcing Arif "MSS" Anwar to rotate, giving

BOOM some freedom in the bot lane. Leaving Rodrigo "LESLÃO" Santos alone in the bot lane on a weak laner such as Visage was a death sentence that BOOM was quick to execute.

BOOM had a far better laning phase in game two, which allowed them to play at their tempo, something that was denied to them in game one.

But one of the issues that has plagued BOOM at TI11 has been their inability to push their advantage and take objectives.

Despite winning the laning stage, BOOM played the next 10 minutes on their side of the map and that gave Soniqs time to come back in farm and take Roshan.

BOOM's early lead evaporated as time went on and Soniqs began their comeback, securing a couple of core pickups and taking the second Aegis as well.

It wasn't all doom and gloom for the Southeast Asian team, however, as they still had a solid lineup in the late game.

However, that all came down to the third Roshan of the game, with another Aegis and a Refresher Shard on the line.

BOOM managed to start the fight well but ended up losing Yopaj, which led to Soniqs taking the third Roshan and securing the game-winning engagement at the 43-minute mark.

With their loss, BOOM drop to a 3-9 record. It's a scary situation for the Southeast Asian team, as their two remaining matches are against PSG.LGD and Team Liqud, two of the strongest teams in Group A.

In order to avoid getting eliminated after the Group Stage, BOOM need to somehow win against PSG.LGD and Liquid while also hoping other teams ranked above them start slipping.

Meanwhile, Soniqs improve to 4-8 and are in full control of their fate. Their next remaining matches of the Group Stage are against BetBoom, Hokori, and Gaimin Gladiators, with a couple of wins enough to secure them a place in the Main Event, albeit in the lower bracket.

TI11 will be hosted in Singapore from 15 to 30 October and features a revamped format and a longer schedule.

The tournament will begin with a Group Stage from 15 to 18 October, where 20 teams will fight to become among the 16 squads to advance to the Main Event.

TI11's Main Event will be a double-elimination bracket and is split into two phases, the first being held from 20 to 23 October while the second will take place from 29 to 30 October.

For everything you need to know about TI11, check here.

BOOM Esports roster:

  1. Souliya "JaCkky" Khoomphetsavong

  2. Erin Jasper "Yopaj" Ferrer

  3. Saieful "Fbz" Ilham

  4. Timothy "Tims" Randrup

  5. Andrei "skem" Ong

Soniqs Esports roster:

  1. Yawar "YawaR" Hassan

  2. Quinn "Quinn" Callahan

  3. Rodrigo "LESLÃO" Santos

  4. Arif "MSS" Anwar

  5. Adrian "Fata" Trinks

Otomo is a long-time gaming enthusiast and caster. He has been playing games since he was 10 and is the biggest Dota 2 fan.

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