NA, SEA, China, and Europe all lost one representative each today, after Day 2 of the Playoffs of the Singapore Major.

OB ESPORTS NEON SENDS FNATIC BACK HOME TO SEA (2-1)

The first match of the day involved a battle between kin. Two Southeast Asian brethren faced each other, with the losing team going home. Fnatic were the clear favorites, being the playoff-seeded team. However, Fnatic's advantage over Neon isn't exactly pronounced. During the SEA Upper Division League, the two teams faced each other in a very tight series. Fnatic beat Neon there 2-1, showing that Neon can really take down Fnatic in the right conditions.

Fnatic dropping to the lower bracket from a loss from Evil Geniuses, and Neon's strong momentum coming from the group stage are the two conditions that allowed Neon to defeat Fnatic in the first round of the lower bracket. With this win, Neon secures at least $12,500 and 200 DPC points. Fnatic goes home with no prizes coming from the Singapore Major.

VICI GAMING BEATS TEAM LIQUID IN TWO EMPHATIC GAMES (2-0)

Vici Gaming didn't take their loss against Invictus Gaming the previous day too hard. They still played in tip-top shape against Team Liquid in the first round of the lower bracket. Game one felt like Vici Gaming checking Team Liquid out first, understanding their strengths and weaknesses. Two early deaths by qojqva's Razor made them play conservatively, which eventually made it easier for Vici Gaming to dictate the game's tempo. Liquid had a chance to turn things around after a clash around the 12-minute mark that saw four of Vici Gaming's players dead. However, Vici's cores reversed the situation when they received enough farm. Game 1 was over in just 34 minutes.

In Game 2, Vici Gaming applied what they learned about Team Liquid's weaknesses from Game 1. They started hitting hard, early and made Taiga's Enigma pay. Liquid's Enigma gave them success on their way to the playoffs, and Vici Gaming made sure that Liquid won't be able to utilize the Enigma to the fullest. Advantage stayed with Vici Gaming for the whole game, winning with a 30k gold advantage in 36 minutes.

For Vici Gaming's win, they move to the next round, where they will be facing Neon tomorrow.

THUNDER PREDATOR STAYS ALIVE, SLAYING TEAM ASTER (2-0)

Thunder Predator resumes their dominance after being stomped by Team Secret the day prior. It looks like Thunder Predator really is the second-best team in this tournament. Doing away with Team Aster with a clean 2-0 score just goes to show how powerful Thunder Predator is.

Interestingly, both teams decided to play two very similar games in their series. For Thunder Predator, it was a trio of Tusk, Pangolier, and Phoenix. This combination helped them beat Team Aster in Game 1. What worked well in Game 1 then worked even better in Game 2.

Meanwhile, for Team Aster, losing to Thunder Predator in a close game made them think that they only needed small adjustments to beat their foe. Playing with a lineup of Death Prophet, Lion, Timbersaw, and Troll Warlord, Team Aster's lineup differed only with one hero. In Game 1, they played with a fifth man Storm Spirit. In Game 2, they replaced him with Oracle. However, the idea of saving the Troll Warlord with Oracle's skills didn't really work out. Their wrong judgment in this draft led to their elimination from the Singapore Major.

VIRTUS.PRO STAYS ALIVE, SENDS QUINCY CREW HOME (2-1)

After going winless on Day 1 of the Playoffs, Virtus.pro finally found their footing in this series. Fighting against NA's Quincy Crew, the sleepy bear from the previous day has finally shown us its fangs. However, it will take one more loss, this time from the hands of Quincy Crew, to finally awaken the bear. The struggle for survival finally brought out Virtus.pro's strengths, leading to a dominant stomp in the next two games.

Both Game 2 and Game 2 came off the back of a Death Prophet flex pick from Virtus.pro. First played by gpk at mid, they then played it in the offlane in Game 3. Game 2 was a complete stomp by Virtus.pro. But Game 3 saw Quincy Crew fighting back stronger in the early game, only for them to lose their lead after two crucial clashes before the twenty-minute mark. Quincy Crew never recovered from these, and it won't take long for the Death Prophet to ravage their towers and take the game away from them.

With this win, Virtus.pro moves on to the next round, facing Thunder Predator next.

SINGAPORE MAJOR PLAYOFFS DAY 3

Two more teams will say goodbye tomorrow, but this time with a $12,500 prize and 200 DPC Points. Singapore Major's Playoffs Day 3 will first see whether or not Evil Geniuses has what it takes to beat Invictus Gaming, and vice versa. On the other side of the bracket, we'll see the two teams who swept their opponents in the previous round, Team Secret and PSG.LGD, face each other.

Then, in the lower bracket, we'll see which one between Thunder Predator and Virtus.pro turns out to be the stronger beast. This is followed by the matchup between Neon and Vici Gaming. The winners of these matches will guarantee a $25,000 purse and 300 DPC Points.