Team Nigma Is Off to a Winning Start In the TI10 Western EU Qualifier

Team Nigma started its The International 10 (TI10) Western Europe (EU) qualifier campaign with a 2-1 victory over Hellbear Smashers in the upper bracket. With their lack of control in the draft during the first game, Team Nigma struggled but they quickly recovered to win the next two games. KuroKy and his teammates did not perform as well as many anticipated in this matchup, but they still managed to secure this crucial victory and advance to the next round. Even though Hellbear Smashers put on a good show, they failed to close it out, dropping into the lower bracket of the TI10 Western EU qualifier.

Team Nigma vs Hellbear Smashers: Match Recap, Highlights, and KuroKy Interview

Recap

Game 1 saw both teams draft a greedy lineup, and there was little bloodshed in the early stages of the game. However, Nigma's lineup got kited during teamfights, as they lacked control and only had one reliable stun - Tidehunter Ravage. Hellbear Smashers exploited this to their full advantage with rASmus (Misery) pulling off some impressive Calls on his Axe, leading to a win in 43 minutes.

In Game 2, Nigma drafted a lineup without reliable stuns, but they had a couple of Silence abilities that they used to perfection this time. On his mid Templar Assassin, Miracle- played like a beast, surpassing all heroes with a gigantic lead in net worth. Nigma quickly ended the game in 32 minutes following a chaotic teamfight for the second Roshan.

Game 3 saw Hellbear Smashers carve out an unexpected Mirana pick in the midlane. On the other hand, Nigma put iLTW on the win condition this time with a safelane Terrorblade as Miracle- played a mid Ember Spirit. Hellbear Smashers did great to find constant pickoffs, but they never able to fully commit to teamfights. They seemed to lack enough damage, and despite BoraNija finishing the game with a 7-0-10 KDA, the team lost in 37 minutes.

Highlights

Here are some highlights of the series.

As KuroKy mentioned in the post-game winner's interview, Team Nigma was not at its best during the first match. In spite of his team's nerves, he is pleased with the fact that with their aggressive playstyle, they bounced back in the second and third games. Nevertheless, it was an important series win for Team Nigma.

While Hellbear Smashers did well today, they were just unable to overcome KuroKy and his teammates' resistance. Falling to the lower bracket, they will face Ghost Frogs in their next series.

Interview: Nigma KuroKy talks about iLTW’s potential

Apart from describing his team’s performance in the series, Team Nigma’s captain, Kuro "KuroKy" Salehi Takhasomi, also offered his thoughts on the future of the team’s newest carry player, Igor "iLTW" Filatov.

“I think this kid has a lot of potential. I think this is the start of his career in a way. He had some good showups in the past for OG and a couple of CIS teams. He’s still pretty young. I think he can go a long way. He is committed to the game. His heart is there. I feel, like I said, a lot of potential. He could become one of the greatest players but that’s up to him.”

Next up in the TI10 Western Europe Qualifiers, we’ll witness OG taking on Vikin.gg to determine who would face Nigma in the next round of the upper bracket.