Riyadh Masters 2022 Day 1 Recap: Team Secret Dominant

Gamers8 esports' Riyadh Masters 2022 kicked off with a day of great LAN action from some of the best teams in the world, displaying the excitement and competitive nature of the Dota 2 LAN esports. Teams from both groups played, but it was TSM's series against Team Liquid in Group A and Team Secret's series against Tundra Esports in Group B that stood out.

While the TSM vs Liquid series had the viewers on the edge of their seats during two very close games, other matches were entertaining for the sheer display of skill. For instance, Team Secret delivered a crushing defeat to Tundra Esports, to cement itself as one of the top contenders at this event.

Recap of day 1 of the Riyadh Masters 2022

Group A

Group A began with a bang as TSM and Liquid brawled for 53 minutes in game one and 63 minutes in game two of the series. Although both teams had their moments, TSM was able to hold on in the crucial moments with the help of Enzo "Timado" O'Connor's masterful carry performance.

At the same time, Nigma Galaxy faced off against Royal Never Give Up (RNG) in a pretty even series. Both teams, who are coming off strong results in Tour 3 of the Dota Pro Circuit (DPC) 2021-22, won one game apiece in the series. Nigma's methods were stronger in the first game, but RNG came back with a better draft in the second.

Nigma proceeded to play Liquid in a key series for the latter after it had lost its first. The first game was going well for Liquid, but a pair of kills followed by a teamfight victory was all it needed for Nigma with an offlane Nature’s Prophet and a Bristleback - Io duo to take the first game. Liquid was once again part of an exciting contest as it fought closely with Nigma in the second game and ultimately secured its first win of the day thanks to a meticulous teamfight execution this time.

RNG faced OG in the last series of the day and got off to a fiery start, winning the opening game with ease. All three of RNG's cores delivered flawless results. In the second game, both teams had some interesting picks as OG chose a position five Alchemist and a carry Arc Warden, whereas RNG chose an Anti Mage as a carry. It turned out to be another thrilling encounter in the sense that both sides competed extensively, resulting in several key moments. Ammar "ATF" Al-Assaf was a beast on Timbersaw for the umpteenth time, assisting his team to a game two victory.

Here are the standings of Group A at the end of day 1 of the Riyadh Masters 2022.

Group B

Despite the fact that both Tundra and Secret used stand-in offlaners, the former was predicted to win the series easily 2-0 considering its recent form. But Secret came out with guns blazing, outplaying Tundra, and penalizing its somewhat greedy drafts. Secret appeared to have Tundra's number from the start and remained one step ahead throughout. Roman "Resolut1on" Fomynok performed admirably in his first series for Secret as a stand-in in the league, finishing with a 25/3/42 KDA.

Team Spirit faced up against Deboosters, and as expected, the International 10 (TI10) champions cruised to a 2-0 victory. The first victory was emphatic, and while the second game dragged a little because Deboosters was able to get some kills thanks to its offlane Elder Titan, Spirit always seemed to be in control and finally triumphed.

Here are the standings of Group B at the end of day 1 of the Riyadh Masters 2022.

This was the first time that we're seeing teams from across all the Major Dota 2 regions compete in a tournament, after TI10. The top teams from around the world showcased their unique strategies and their flair on the first day of the Riyadh Masters 2022.

Considering the humungous stakes, the second day of the Gamers8 tournament is going to be even more exciting as it will feature a total of eight Bo2 series with some spicy matches like PSG.LGD's rematch against Team Spirit after TI10's grand finals, OG vs Nigma and more.

Keep up with the event using AFK Gaming's event tracker.