Team Yandex and Team Spirit set for BLAST Slam VIII grand-final rematch

Team Yandex reached the BLAST Slam VIII Dota 2 grand final by beating Team Spirit 2-0 in the upper bracket. Spirit then won the lower-bracket final to secure another meeting with the same opponent.

Team Spirit defeated PARIVISION 2-1 on October 11, according to organiser BLAST's results page. The two upper-bracket finalists will therefore meet again in the tournament's deciding series.

The opening map of Saturday's Yandex-Spirit encounter lasted 50 minutes and 11 seconds. Alimzhan 'watson' Islambekov finished without a death, recording 19 kills and 13 assists.

Yandex avenged a 2-1 defeat to Spirit in the October 3 seeding match. Its playoff route also included 2-1 wins over LGD Gaming and PARIVISION.

The event runs from September 29 to October 11 with 16 teams. Malta hosts the deciding stage. The prize pool is $750,000, with $270,000 allocated to the champion.