A chaotic back-and-forth series with a marathon Game 2 sandwiched between two EG wins sets up a mouthwatering rendezvous with OG in the upper bracket for Arteezy and co. as Secret once again falls to the lower bracket.

EG comprehensively won the first game off the back of a strong stun-focused build and some wicked teamplay, pushing Puppey’s men to the back foot. Still, bookies considered Team Secret only minor underdogs at that point even if they had to complete a reverse sweep.

Fast-forward to 40 minutes into the second game: EG holds an 11 000 gold lead as their Rubick picks up Aghanim’s Scepter. How Secret managed to make a comeback – or how S4 and co. threw it all away, depending on their perspective – ultimately redeemed their drafting choices, and the conclusion of Game 2 was so epic that even the losers had to tip their hat.

If you swing at the king, you best not miss – and it felt like EG will be affected by the loss of the hour-long epic struggle that preceded Game 3. It seemed like Team Secret woke up for good, soaring into a 2k gold lead in just the space of four minutes before a set of sloppy deaths gave up most of this early advantage. However, they quickly bounced back, extending their lead further in the early game. And yet, even with Puppey’s men keeping their net worth lead into the mid-game, it was EG who took out the first tier 3 tower, unexpectedly turning the game around, and after Arteezy and SumaiL hit level 25, it all ended in a flash.

While it seemed like MidOne could redeem his awful showing in Game 1 as the series progressed, he ended the series with a 12/22/19 overall K/D/A – and now that Team Secret is back in the lower bracket, is it time to remind everyone about their shaky group stage performance and past TI record?

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