DRX vs Zeta: stax lurks on Zeta to secure the 2-0

VALORANT Pacific (a combination of APAC) kicked off with a potential upset on the cards as Zeta Division took to the site against DRX to battle it out.

As part of the new franchising system for 2023, the Pacific region saw DRX (Korea) go against Zeta, teams who had formerly shown up on the international stage with a bang. The desk started by setting up the match, setting up who fans should be watching out for within the game. Specifically, RB from DRX who is a sentinel flex player and his ability as a flex player makes him someone to keep your eyes on, especially in this matchup.

The desk also covered how Zeta Division is coming into 2023 hungry to cement their legacy across VALORANT and how the team had actively said they wanted to face off against DRX. For fans of the Pacific region, the Japan vs Korea rivalry in match one was something to get excited for. One noticeable change for this set of matches was the lack of DRX player BuZz, he cited personal reasons for missing this match but will be back next week! Foxy9 is playing in Buzz's place for this series.

DRX’s pick of Ascent to kick off the series was meant to be a comfort pick for them while something Zeta had struggled on in the past. But this theory didn’t work out in DRX’s favor as Zeta claimed the first three rounds for themselves, with Laz’s Sova ensuring a solid KDA for the team. DRX clawed their way back into the map, taking several rounds but not in the usual clean fashion they are known for. But this quickly cleared up as Zeta fell behind and DXR stormed ahead taking seven rounds in a row before switching sides.

Despite their best efforts and how well it started out, Zeta’s earlier wins quickly fell behind as by round 16, DRX had created a 10 round consecutive win streak. The monstrous run by DRX was due to MaKo buying time and plays, securing kills, and cleaning up the angles Zeta left open. While stax showed just why Ascent is such a strong map for the squad. Foxy9 claims an ace on his debut on the Pacific stage with a headshot to finish the game, just one round after Zeta had managed to pull back a win.

Despite Pearl being Zeta’s pick, DRX wasted no time in setting themselves up for a clean 2-0 taking pistol round and then proceeding to continue with a four-round winning streak. Zeta managed to fight their way back onto the board early on taking a win but their momentum was stopped moments later by DRX Mako and RB coming ready to shut them down. Foxy9 scooped up several sets of three kills across the map while MaKo went on the lurk to get behind Zeta, securing the Korean team a 10-1 lead before swapping sides. The meta in particular was working in DRX’s favor, as the double controller combined with using util and playing back supported DRX’s swings and lurks.

DRX were coming in hot, showing why they are the team to beat in the new Pacific region. But the new half had Zeta with renewed energy coming onto the map determined to show why they can compete with DRX and deserve a ticket to Masters Tokyo. SugarZ3ro claimed four kills in the pistol round, cleaning up DRX being baited onto site. Zeta showed patience while SugarZ3ro pulled out his clutch factor, taking multiple kills for the next four rounds dropped by DRX as Zeta cleaned up on attack. The rest of Zeta maintained cool calm and collected as they played cleanly, building back their economy. But stax saw the play at round 17 and pushed DRX to match point.

DRX secured the clean 2-0 against Zeta.

And how could we not mention this golden moment? stax lurking on Zeta to secure a soloq style kill was too good. You can see why stax was happy dancing in his chair throughout the series.

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