Excitement is brewing over at the DPC Season 2 China Upper Division, already in its fourth week. We have not seen any of the major favorites rise up to expectations. Most notably, Invictus Gaming, who was the champions of the Singapore Major last month.
We reckon it’s probably redemption week for the Chinese powerhouse if they want tickets to the second major. Here’s our breakdown of four crucial matches this week, and our Dota 2 bet predictions to boot.
Hu “kaka” Liangzhi
As of now, IG is still king of the hill at Dota Pro Circuit 2021 (DPC 2021). Any thought of betting against this world-class team would be ridiculous. Even so, IG already incurred two losses. One to PSG.LGD, the second runner-up at the Singapore Major, and another from Team Aster, a Singapore Major candidate at best.
For the most part, the losses were objectively not iG’s fault. The recent 7.29 update brought several overpowered hero buffs and Invictus is slow to adapt. Notably, Beastmaster’s Scepter upgrade was a massive power spike when purchased during midgame. Although IG eventually realized that the hero needs to be banned, it was too late to recover from the one-match handicap.
With Broodmother and Beastmaster receiving the nerfs they deserve in last patch, let’s just say the meta is somewhat balanced for now. This means IG has no excuse to lose their match versus RNG on May 7. The Dota 2 odds on Buff.bet favors IG at x1.26 return, while RNG has an x3.60 return.
We should go for a correct score 2:0 in favor of Invictus Gaming.
On the same day, Vici Gaming and Elephant are looking to settle their scores as well. Elephant’s previous DPC run hasn’t been up to par, to say the least. After they missed their Major debut altogether, the stack of all-stars decided to recruit a veteran coach Bai “rOtK” Fan, the seasoned Chinese Dota star. With rOtK on their side, Elephant has already seen decent results, defeating both EHOME and Sparking Arrow Gaming.
Meanwhile, VG is on the bottom half of the spectrum for having two losses and only one win. In all fairness, both losses were from formidable opponents, namely IG and Aster. These losses were also 1:2 losses, so VG definitely gave them a run for their money. Hence, VG is most certainly a contender team in this match versus Elephant. Statistically, the odds are also in VG’s favor, at x1.57 against Elephant’s x2.25 odds.
I would go with a Total maps played Over 2.5 in this selection at.
SAG is in a sticky situation right now, with four losses in their book. It seems like they are having a difficult time figuring out the latest Dota 2 meta. Coupled with their lack of experience, it’s a recipe for disaster for this underdog squad. For a team that made it into Upper Division as a Lower Division S1 winner, they can still get valuable experience during this season.
Against the renowned PSG.LGD, it’s absolutely impeccable that Wang “Ame” Chunyu and his team aren’t looking to miss out on this easy victory. The Dota 2 odds on PSG.LGD is at x1.04, while SAG has a whopping x9.00 odds to win.
Ideally, we would go for a Total map time (map 1) under 32:00.
It’s an even match-up on paper for IG and Elephant, at x1.82 and x1.92, respectively. However, if we put IG’s past achievements into account, there’s no denying that IG is still a heavy favorite. Whereas, Elephant’s bandwagon was a massive upset since its debut last year.
Anyhow, Elephant does have some tricks up its sleeves. Lu “Somnus丶M” Yao, their star mid-player, is relatively consistent at asserting dominance on its opponents. More often than not, Somnus’ massive lead is what enables Elephant to trample over its competition. However, many opponents are learning to pay respect bans on his signature picks, ranging from Storm Spirit, Wind Ranger, and Morphling. IG, on the other hand, boasts a more dynamic roster and probably would not hesitate to prevent Somnus from gaining any power gap.
Overall, we are looking at an outright bet on IG winning.
Frankly, there are undoubtedly crucial matches for the Chinese rivals this week at the DPC Season 2 China Upper Division. The outcome will determine further clarify how the Chinese Dota 2 scene is looking ahead of the next Major.
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