Fnatic's Outstanding Support Performances Eliminate T1 From The Stockholm Major 2022.

The ESL One Stockholm Major 2022 has seen Fnatic defeat T1 in a Southeast Asian (SEA) derby to eliminate it from the competition. The lower bracket series was decided after three games but it was Fnatic's support duo of Jaunuel "Jaunuel" Arcilla and Djardel Jicko B. "DJ" Mampusti who performed outstandingly in the first and third games to secure Fnatic's 2-1 victory. Both players used spells and items with first-class proficiency. T1 finds itself eliminated in the 9th-12th place, while Fnatic breaks its streak of underperformance at Dota 2 Majors by breaking into the top eight for the first time in three years.

T1 vs Fnatic: Match Recap and Highlights

Recap

Game 1 saw Fnatic understand the game situation remarkably well. T1's lineup was quite powerful until Fnatic's cores obtained BKBs so Fnatic refrained from engaging until they had it. And as soon as they got their hands on this vital item, Fnatic went on the attack and achieved quick success. T1 struggled to inflict sustained damage to Fnatic's heroes and constantly came up short during teamfights. DJ's Winter Wyvern with Cold Embrace and Wraith Pact played a significant role in Fnatic's damage mitigation. DJ and his colleagues delivered an impressive performance, leading to a 44 minute victory.

In game 2, Fnatic went with an unorthodox Sniper selection for Armel, which, on paper, appeared to be a wise decision against T1's heroes. Armel exploited the hero's long range to outfarm Karl's Tiny in the lane and rise to the top of the networth list. However, it became evident during the teamfights that T1's draft had the upper hand, and the team executed it flawlessly this time. The squad had created a 9k advantage by the 23 minute mark, but it was wary about Sniper's high ground hold. T1 took its time to become even stronger, eventually finishing the game in 44 minutes.

In game 3, Fnatic went for a fast-paced lineup with a Death Prophet mid, an offlane Visage, and a carry Luna, whereas T1 focused on the middle and later stages with a carry Phantom Assassin. Fnatic focused on the objectives early on, as expected, with T1 unable to respond. But the team allowed Gabbi to grow stronger, and with a BKB on him, the squad was able to level the game. T1 appeared to be winning a game-defining teamfight in the Roshan pit, but superb spell use from Jaunuel's Bane kept Raven's Luna alive, turning the teamfight in Fnatic's favor. The Roshan was then secured by Fnatic, and the team played meticulously to win in 40 minutes.

Highlights

here are some highlights of the series.

With better results in recent events, the current Fnatic roster appears to have improved in the past few months. The team was the best SEA team in Tour 2, and with BOOM Esports and T1 already out of the Major, it remains the region's last hope. It is now guaranteed that Fnatic will receive a portion of the Dota Pro Circuit (DPC) points and prize money, and will look to advance further in the tournament in order to receive a greater share of these rewards. Next up for the team will be a fierce-looking OG roster.

The team had quite a mixed bag of performances at the Major - at times it looked quite good, at other times not so much. In today's series, the team played hard, but in the end, it was small margins and individual performances from Fnatic’s players that decided the outcome. The team will be disappointed not to have won anything from this Major, but as its coach Park "March" Tae-won noted during the exit interview, they will rebound stronger.