Virtus.Pro And Team Aurora Eliminated From BetBoom DACHA Dubai 2024

Four days into the Group Stage, two teams have already been eliminated from the million-dollar tournament in Dubai. Two more will join them on the flight back home in the coming days.

Virtus.Pro Can’t Keep Up With The Pressure

Russian squad Virtus.Pro came into the tournament and Group Stage as underdogs, but this team is on the rise with a lot of potential. However, the lack of experience from most players on the roster showed, as they threw insurmountable leads.

Teams cannot afford to throw a single game with every single game counting in this six-team Group Stage format—unfortunately, these mistakes from Virtus.Pro has resulted in their confirmed departure from BetBoom DACHA Dubai 2024.

VP’s first series in the tournament was against Team Aurora, the two expected teams to place 5-6th, which ended up coming true. Both teams took a map in this series to end the Best-of-2 in a draw. 

In their next series, the Bears faced off against LGD Gaming, a team who had recently swapped Mid Laners. Though VP dropped the first map without a chance, they could still bounce back on the second to get their second tie of the tournament, putting them on a 2-2 record.

Next on the hit list was Team Liquid, the clear favorite in the match. However, VP went in swinging in the first map, building a 30,000 net worth lead at the 42-minute mark. Somehow, the pressure got to the players, and Liquid could make a miracle comeback and take the game. VP’s mental game was at an all-time low as Liquid proceeded to sweep the next game and take the series 2-0.

The decisive series was against Team Falcons, who had a significant net worth lead in the first game. Virtus.Pro fought back, bringing the net worth lead closer in their favor, but their efforts were not enough. The Falcons could convert their Game 1 victory into a 2-0 victory. 

No victories today.

Tomorrow we will play the last group match against @GaiminGladiator at 10:00 CET. pic.twitter.com/448Pm1Qwbs

— Virtus.pro (@virtuspro) February 7, 2024

These results put Virtus.Pro with a 2-6 record, eliminating them from the tournament in Groups with one more day left to play.

Unfavorable Roster Shuffle For Team Aurora

Team Aurora, previously Talon Esports, had a fantastic 2023 after being the year’s dark horses. While the entire team moved from their former organization to Team Aurora, Mid Laner Rafli “Mikoto” Fathur Rahman was not a part of the team’s plans in 2024. 

Mikoto’s replacement was Armel “Armel” Tabios, a renowned player from Southeast Asia, but this decision has yet to pay off, which was shown in BetBoom DACHA Dubai.

As previously mentioned, Aurora’s first series was a draw against Virtus.Pro. Not the most fabulous start, but not the worst. 

Aurora’s next opponents were the Gaimin Gladiators, who could demolish the Southeast Asian squad 2-0 in one of the biggest stomps the tournament has displayed so far: 25 and 34-minute games. 

Next on the list was LGD Gaming, who proved to be too challenging for Team Aurora, for now at least. The series ended 2-0 in favor of the Chinese squad, and Aurora could only get a combined 15 kills throughout two maps.

In the do-or-die series against Team Liquid, Aurora had to win the series 2-0 to stay alive in the tournament. An outstanding performance from all five players helped Team Aurora secure the first map, which was a step in the right direction. However, they couldn’t win the second map, meaning their score was insufficient to make it out of Groups.

feels like shit😥

— 23savage (@23savageDotA) February 7, 2024

Both Team Aurora and Virtus.Pro still have one more match to play, but their elimination is guaranteed already, so their next series will have no meaning. In Group B, no team has been sent packing yet, but OG and Nouns are the likely candidates.