After a full weekend of tough competition at the OGA Dota PIT Minor, Ninjas in Pyjamas managed to turn a rough start into a ticket to Disneyland Paris and the MDL Paris Major.
Several teams in attendance, like Alliance, Gambit Esports, and NiP, all pulled out of ESL One Mumbai to compete in the Minor for one last shot at the next Dota Pro Circuit Major.
In groups, NiP struggled heavily against the likes of BOOM ID and Royal Never Give Up in Group A, heading into the playoffs with a 4-5 record. On the other end, both Alliance and Royal went 6-2 to claim the top spots for the main event.
Everything turned around for NiP once the playoffs began; the team went on a six-game winning streak to eliminate Majestic Esports, Forward Gaming, and Alliance in order to reach the grand finals.
In the grand finals, NiP clashed with EHOME, a team, while struggling with roster stability, has a lot of experience at the highest level of the current Dota meta. It was a back-and-forth affair, with both sides trading blows from the start.
NiP looked extremely strong in the back half of game one, managing to close the game out and carry some of that momentum with them into game two. EHOME bounced back on the defensive side after a slow start, however, managing to push NiP back with a Medusa-centric rotation to take game two.
Heading into the third game, NiP sniped Medusa from EHOME as they utilized a similar strategy that helped them take the series lead once more. That match lasted nearly a full 60 minutes and the fatigue was clear on some of the players.
After dropping game four, Peter “ppd” Dager and his squad got a little unconventional in the deciding match of the Minor. With a few odd picks centered around the Huskar call, NiP managed to stave off a late push from their Chinese opponents to take the OGA Dota PIT Minor crown.
Along with winning the $125,000 and 120 Pro Circuit Points from the Minor, NiP claimed the final spot in the fourth Major of the season, MDL Disneyland Paris. They join 15 others who will all battle for their share of $1,000,000 and 15,000 Pro Circuit Points when the Major begins on May 4.
