TI11 Group Stage Day 2: EG, RNG, Aster, Tundra top standings halfway through Groups

The competition is heating up at The International 11 (TI11) as the second day of the Group Stage on Sunday (16 October) came to a close.

Royal Never Give Up (RNG) and Team Aster from China as well as Evil Geniuses (EG) from North America and Tundra Esports from Western Europe topped the groups through the halfway point of the Group Stage.

Here's a quick recap of the day's action.

RNG, EG top Group A as PSG.LGD bounce back

RNG rose to the top of the standings in Group A at the end of Day 2, scoring two sweeps over Soniqs Esports and Gaimin Gladiators to get a near-perfect 9-1 record.

After a perfect run in Day 1, EG suffered their first 0-2 loss of the Group Stage to Last Chance Qualifier (LCQ) winner Team Liquid, but still bounced back by sweeping surprise South American package Hokori.

The North American powerhouse ended the day with a 8-2 record, looking every bit like the contenders for the Aegis of Champions they were in previous years.

But the biggest story in Group A for Day 2 is Chinese favourites PSG.LGD finally showing up. After only managing a measly 2-4 record in Day 1, PSG.LGD scored huge back-to-back sweeps over Western European juggernauts OG and Liquid to improve to a 6-4 record.

Despite getting swept by PSG.LGD, both Liquid and OG ended Day 2 on a positive note by scoring their own sweeps over EG and Soniqs, respectively, and finishing with 6-4 records apiece.

PSG.LGD, Liquid, and OG are now in a three-way tie for the third seed of Group A.

Gaimin Gladiators (4-6), Hokori (4-6), and BOOM Esports (3-7) are still in position to advance to the Main Event, though all three are likely headed for the lower bracket.

Meanwhile, BetBoom Team and Soniqs sit at the bottom of the group with 2-8 records apiece. These two squads will need to step it up if they want to avoid getting eliminated after the Group Stage.

Aster, Tundra emerge from the chaos in Group B

After a chaotic Day 1 for Group B that featured two four-way ties, a clear pecking order has been established in Day 2.

Aster sit atop the standings with a 8-2 record, having drawn with Entity while sweeping TSM and Beastcoast.

Tundra are not far behind with a 7-3 line, as they ended Day 2 with a draw with Beastcoast and two sweeps over LCQ winner Team Secret and Talon Esports.

There is a three-way tie for the two Top 4 spots in Group B between TI10 champions Team Spirit, Secret, and South American hopefuls Thunder Awaken, who all finished Day 2 with 6-4 records.

Entity (5-5), Fnatic (5-5), and TSM (5-5) have managed to keep their heads above water, though they have their work cut out for them if they want to avoid starting the Main Event from the lower bracket.

Meanwhile, Beastcoast and Talon Esports both only managed a 2-8 record halfway through the Group Stage and are in danger of an early elimination.

Here's how all of the matches in Day 2 of TI11's Group Stage went down:

• Team Secret 1-1 Fnatic

• Thunder Awaken 0-2 Entity

• Team Spirit 1-1 Talon Esports

• Team Aster 2-0 TSM

• Tundra Esports 1-1 Beastcoast

• OG 0-2 PSG.LGD

• Gaimin Gladiators 1-1 BOOM Esports

• Royal Never Give Up 2-0 Soniqs Esports

• Evil Geniuses 0-2 Team Liquid

• Hokori 1-1 BetBoom Team

• Team Aster 1-1 Entity

• Fnatic 2-0 Beastcoast

• Team Secret 2-0 TSM

• Team Spirit 1-1 Thunder Awaken

• Tundra Esports 2-0 Talon Esports

• Team Liquid 0-2 PSG.LGD

• OG 2-0 Soniqs Esports

• Royal Never Give Up 2-0 Gaimin Gladiators

• Evil Geniuses 2-0 Hokori

• BOOM Esports 1-1 BetBoom Team

• Team Spirit 1-1 TSM

• Thunder Awaken 2-0 Talon Esports

• Entity 1-1 Fnatic

• Team Secret 0-2 Tundra Esports

• Team Aster 2-0 Beastcoast

Here are the standings after Day 2 of TI11's Group Stage:

Group A

1. Royal Never Give Up - 9-1

2. Evil Geniuses - 8-2

3. OG - 6-4

4. PSG.LGD - 6-4

5. Team Liquid - 6-4

6. Gaimin Gladiators - 4-6

7. Hokori - 4-6

8. BOOM Esports - 3-7

9. BetBoom Team - 2-8

10. Soniqs Esports - 2-8

Group B

1. Team Aster - 8-2

2. Tundra Esports - 7-3

3. Team Spirit - 6-4

4. Team Secret - 6-4

5. Thunder Awaken - 6-4

6. Entity - 5-5

7. Fnatic - 5-5

8. TSM - 3-7

9. Beastcoast - 2-8

10. Talon Esports - 2-8

TI11's Group Stage will take place from 15 to 18 October, where 20 teams will fight to become among the 16 squads to advance to the Main Event. The 20 teams have been split into two groups of 10 teams each and will go through a single round robin with best-of-two matches.

The Top 4 teams in each group will advance to the upper bracket of the Main Event. The 5th-8th placed teams will also qualify for the Main Event, though they will have to start from the lower bracket.

Meanwhile, the bottom two teams of each group will be eliminated early.

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.

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

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

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