Maç Tahmini: Evil Geniuses - 9 Pandas | Dota 2

Hello and welcome to EGamersWorld.

We continue to watch the action at the biggest commercial event in Dota 2 history. The group stage of Riyadh Masters 2023 is heating up, and we're rushing in with a new betting tirade on one of the many matches.

This time we are talking about Evil Geniuses and 9 Pandas, perhaps the most controversial match of the first round of games. It's all about the poor playing form of the two teams, as well as their position at the Riyadh Masters 2023.

Evil Geniuses made it to the $15,000,000 tournament thanks to ESL's ELO system. Before that, they were terrible on the international stage.

9 Pandas, on the other hand, were playing confidently on major world stages exactly until they got to the Riyadh Masters 2023. More on that below.

Let's find out how this interesting and controversial match will end at The International. Whether one of the sides will be able to earn a clean victory and start a new stage of the biggest event with important The International prizes in their pockets.

Let's go.

Form 9 Pandas

Let's open the match analysis with an analysis of 9 Pandas' form. In this match the team will play the first number one.

Bookmakers are confident in the success of 9 Pandas. The odds for a Pandas victory are at 2.8 and although it doesn't look very convincing, especially for Bo2, it's a strong indicator against EG.

They have managed to earn an advantage and serious player status by systematically improving their performance. They look stable, but with few caveats.

9 Pandas started the year in third place at DPC 2023: EEU Division 1 Tour 1. However, at the first international tournament of the year - The Lima Major 2023 - they managed to get out of the group while still under the HellRaisers banner, playing with stand-ins. \

In the second season of DPC 9Pandas took the top 1 spot, beating all direct competitors, namely Team Spirit and BB Team. In addition, 9Pandas surprised everyone at The Berlin Major 2023. In Germany, the Pandas made it to the Top 3, which was the best result for the region in a year.

The third DPC cycle of 9Pandas ended with qualification to the last Major of the season - The Bali Major 2023 - with a third-place finish in the home league. Next up was the DreamLeague S20

• 9Pandas roster: RAMZES, kiyotaka, MieRo, Antares, Solo .

All year long the team has been gaining in performance and this applies primarily to the international scene. At DreamLeague S20 it was top 7, and at Bali Major 2023 it was top 6.

Riyadh Masters 2023 started for 9 Pandas at the Play-In stage and almost ended with it. "Pandas" played for third place in the Play-In and had to make their way here through Decider. There they were on the verge of being eliminated after losing to the Vp of the first maps, but they made it through.

The most popular characters of 9Pandas

The most popular 9 Pandas character is Skywrath Mage. He has appeared in Pandas games 6 times and has 3 wins.

He is followed by Bounty Hunter (4 matches, 50% wins), Tiny (3 matches, 66% wins), Bloodseeker (3 matches, 33% wins). Also in the pool are Chen and Doom (2 matches each, 100% wins), and Enchantress (2 matches, 50% wins).

Evil Geniuses uniforms

Let's move on to a breakdown of the Evil Geniuses' game form. In this match, the residents of South America play the second number.

Bookmakers are looking at the prospect of an EG win without hype. The odds are at around 5.2.

Despite the bo2 format, such a figure hints at a serious gap for EG. It's silly to argue with the pre-match status quo, especially after EG's recent performance at Bali Major.

In the first round of DPC 2023 SA Division 1, Evil Geniuses finished second. A win over Beastcoast was not enough. Later visited The Lima Major 2023, where they more than made up for the loss in their home league by finishing top 6 in the Peruvian tournament.

Then play the second round of the DPC in South America and again top 2, and again Beastcoast are ahead. However, the international scene helps again, where EG are already top 4 at ESL One Berlin Major 2023, making them the highest performing team from the region in history.

In the third DPC cycle, Evil Geniuses finally clawed their way back to the top of the regional scene. Evil Geniuses won DPC 2023: SA Division 1. And after such a good streak of high scores, EG fell face down in the mud, finishing in the top 18 at Bali Major 2023.

• Evil Geniuses line-up: Pakazs, Chris Luck, Wisper, Matthew, Pandaboo.

Evil Geniuses made it to the Riyadh Masters 2023 thanks to ESL rankings and the merits of the past. I don't know if the Bali Major 2023 was a mental breakdown or if EG really started playing so badly. Here's a look at EG here.

Evil Geniuses' most popular heroes

The top most popular Evil Geniuses heroes were Beastmaster and Death Prophet. Both heroes were taken 8 times each and had a 75% win rate.

Following DP and Primal Beast was Leshrac, and he was most often played in the third position. He appeared 6 times and had a 66% winrate.

In addition, Marci (5 matches, 60% wins), Templar Assassin (4 matches, 100% wins), Jakiro (4 matches, 100% lunch) were picks.

History of head-to-head meetings

The teams have already played each other three times during the season. It looks pretty balanced. One win for each side and a draw.

Match outcome

Despite the gap between the teams in terms of odds, I still don't see a clear favourite for this match. As far as I'm concerned, neither side is capable of closing out the game with a 2-0 scoreline right now.

Evil Geniuses were abysmal at the last international event, and 9 Pandas were very sluggish at the Riyadh Masters 2023. All in all, I think +1.5 for EG is the most logical bet.

Bottom line: +1.5 on Evil Geniuses.