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Credit: ESL | Helena Kristiansson

The battle begins

ESL One Malaysia 2022: Three teams most likely to win




ESL One Malaysia 2022 begins in less than two days on August 23, 2022, at the Arena of Stars, Genting Highlands, Malaysia.

Twelve teams from the world will compete for a prize pool of $400,000 — making it the last Dota 2 LAN event before the TI11 regional qualifiers.

With the number of Western European teams in attendance, the event will also serve as a prelude to the TI11 WEU regional qualifiers.

To our best understanding and gut feeling, if any, we have chosen three teams who are most likely to take the trophy home.

Team Aster

ESL One Malaysia 2022
Photo: Huya Dota 2 Winter Invitational

The second runner-up at the recently concluded PGL Arlington Major 2022 — the last Valve-sanctioned Dota 2 LAN before the TI11 qualifiers — is one of the favourites heading into the event.

The Chinese behemoth has been consistent at DPC China Regional Leagues throughout the year and has incredible players adept at acclimatizing to any situation.

Their run at the PGL Arlington Major was fabulous, but they lost out to the eventual winners and TI10 champions, Team Spirit.

ESL One Malaysia 2022 is a splendid opportunity for Team Aster to cement their place as one of the best before heading to TI11.

Keep an eye out, they might just win the whole darn thing.

OG Esports

ESL One Malaysia 2022
Photo: ESL | Helena Kristiansson

The most loved org in the history of Dota 2, OG Esports is undoubtedly a force to be reckoned with. Rebuilding their roster from the ground up in the DPC 2021/22 season, the team started showing promising results.

A young team led by two veterans, and mentored by two-time TI champions, OG has consistently placed in the upper echelons of the DPC WEU 2021/22 season.

They won the ESL One Stockholm Major 2022 and had a decent fourth-place finish at the PGL Arlington Major 2022.

However, every time they won something significant on LAN was due to the legendary stand-in and two-time TI winner Ceb.

Misha and Chuvash were unable to attend any LAN events because of visa issues due to the Russo-Ukraine war. But this time around, it’ll be Chuvash standing in for Misha.

OG is in a bit of a tickle, but they have the element of surprise.

BOOM Esports

Photo: BOOM Esports

The Southeast Asian representative has been a pleasant sight for sore eyes in the DPC 2021/22 season. They have constantly been at the top throughout all tours of DPC SEA.

This is SEA’s star-studded roster.

Talented, highly skilled, aggressive, calculated, and a team with a solid foundation – this team has it all.

The icing on the cake: coached by the legendary SEA player Mushi.

They had good runs at tournaments, including the PGL Arlington Major 2022, and even won the Gamers Galaxy: Invitational Series Dubai 2022.

A candidate worthy of winning the trophy.

Dark Horse: Nigma Galaxy

Photo: WePlay

Bias incoming.

A lot of bias.

However, Nigma Galaxy should not be underestimated. They are the beauty during online games but are true beasts at offline events.

Nigma has a knack for performing comfortably at LAN events and is a different team altogether. The roster is stacked with TI champions, and you cannot rule them out.

They have a legendary captain and one of the best drafters to ever grace the Dota 2 scene. They have an incredible carry and mid. They have one of the best position four’s out there.

On a good day, Nigma might just take the cake and eat it too.

Karan Rathod is a writer for jaxon.gg covering anything and everything to do with Dota 2. Few people love Dota as much as Karan, whether it's grinding away in pub games or watching the latest competitive tournament and breaking down the results. In addition to their great love of Dota 2, Karan also enjoys hitting the gym for some exercise and sitting down with a nice book.