The opening day of Extreme Masters Chengdu gave spectators some exhilarating matches and unusual strategies. A whole host of exciting games in groups A and B means that the final two groups will have a hard time matching up to expectations.

But none of the groups are easy for any player, and with the mass of talent on-show tomorrow, fans can expect some more fascinating games. On top of the raw skill that each player possesses, there is the small matter of MYM lineups battling it out. Jae Ho 'Moon' Jang already showed his unquestionable ability today but tomorrow sees four more MYM-related players going head-to-head. In group C we will see new MYM man taking on Hyo Sub 'FoCuS' Eom while Baker's team mate, Sung Sik 'ReminD' Kim will have to face another ex-Maker in the shape of Manuel 'GrubbY' Schenkhuizen.

Group C

It's been quite a while since played at an international LAN. To judge his offline form, we need to look all the way back to the Blizzcon regionals in June, where he had a difficult time. Two 2-1 losses in the early rounds saw him eliminated faster than he would have liked but his online form has been much better in recent weeks.

In such a tough group, the experience of the other two players might be too much for the Brit. Zhuo 'TeD' Zeng in particular is a superb LAN player and his 61% record against humans suggests trouble for Demuslim. In fact, with a 51% win ratio against orc (one of the best undead vs orc ratios of any player), Ted looks like the favourite in the group. The chinese player has won two of the last three games between him and Hyo Sub 'FoCuS' Eom.

Second place in the group will likely come down to the battle of the Zotac heroes. Focus' LAN experience is marginally better than Demuslim's, but his results are not. You have to go back to December 2007 and the second season of Afreeca to find a top three LAN finish. Statistically, the two players are evenly matched. Focus has a 55% win ratio vs human, while Demuslim's human vs orc is... yep, 55%. Previous results have gone the way of the Brit, but with all three of their previous matches being online, there is no way to separate these two players until the match is played.

Group D

The final group is yet another nightmare for anyone who likes an easy bet but one player just edges it. Sung Sik 'ReminD' Kim generally has the advantage over both Manuel 'GrubbY' Schenkhuizen and Xuwen 'InFi' Wang. So if previous results are anything to go by, the nightelf player should win the group. On top of that, Remind’s recent form is by far the best in this group. Just two losses in his last ten games puts him just ahead of the other pair.

Infi’s recent form is also impressive – just one more loss than Remind. It’s been a long time since Infi showed any real LAN success but he seems to be slowly regaining shape. First place in the recent Razer Dream Cup was a nice step on from his second place at IEF China back in June. If he can overcome his inconsistency and finally put some good back-to-back performances together he has a good chance of qualifying from Group D.

Grubby, meanwhile, has just about kept his head above water in previous weeks. Six wins in his last ten games is hardly championship form but when you consider that two of his losses came in grand finals, maybe it doesn’t look so bad after all. Apart from one weak performance in ESWC Cheoanan, Grubby has finished top three in every tournament for over a year now. That kind of reliability doesn’t leave much room for criticism. If Grubby doesn’t make it out of the group stage, it will be a huge upset.