

The hero of Spirit’s TI win, Collapse’s Magnus plays from that tournament instantly became the stuff of legend. Using rotations to great effect, he prefers to play an active role that can enable his team (especially Yatoro) rather than sitting around farming on a late-game hero. His map sense is a thing of beauty, and his positioning in fights is exemplary. As flashy as Topias “Topson” Taavitsainen, as dangerous as Cheng “NothingToSay” Jin Xiang, and as consistent as Amer “Miracle-” Al-Barkawi, the Russian star is known for simply outplaying opponents.ĭespite his aggression, Khertek isn’t some gung-ho Rambo. One of the most aggressive Mid players out there, TORONTOTOKYO is the embodiment of high-intensity Dota. If given the space, he can very easily take over a game. Calling well above his years in terms of maturity, he shows the kind of control and reservation usually seen in players with much more experience. Apart from excelling at the basic duties of a carry, such as farming and teamfights, Yatoro also has an excellent idea of when to engage and disengage.

Moreover, he is one of the few players to have reached 12,000 MMR, so his mechanical skill is virtually unparalleled. His usage of playing 14 different heroes in just 20 games at TI10 was exceptional, and his immense hero pool continues to be a thorn in the side of opponent drafters. The intrepid Position 1 of Team Spirit began his career in the Yellow Submarine alongside all but one of his teammates. Analyzing replays might show you what these are, but we did that so you don’t have to. Their evolution into superstars may have happened overnight, but it was their own individual qualities and traits that took them there. The players of Team Spirit, who were once little-known Tier 2 talents, are now recognized and loved (or hated) worldwide. Spirit came out of literally nowhere to take home the biggest prize in the history of esports, and just when people were sure the team was just lucky, they have once again proved their mettle. In OG’s case, though, the team had four players who had won multiple majors either as players or coaches. It’s not easy to find a team that performs at their best exactly when nobody expects them to, with the only one that comes to mind being OG. In the words of Alexander “TORONTOTOKYO” Khertek, “HATERS WHERE ARE YOU NOW?” Impressed by their tenacity and courage in the face of adversity, we thought we’d give them a shoutout and discuss just what makes the team a treat to watch. They took it in their stride, and against considerable odds, secured third place in the DPC rankings for TI. “Lucky!” “One-patch wonder!” “Fluke TI!” were just some words and phrases thrown around following a slump in Team Spirit’s performance for most of 2022. The road to their current status as one of the favorites for TI11 was paved with many patches of poor form, lack of coordination and frustration. The ride, however, hasn’t exactly been smooth for Yaroslav “Miposhka” Naidenov and the boys. The little-known CIS squad barely had any fans within their own region, and had only ever had one podium finish in a Tier 1 tournament.įast-forward to the present day, and you don’t have to be a Team Spirit fan to appreciate what the CIS team has achieved over the course of the last 10 months. You’d have a hard time finding anyone other than some friends and relatives of the players and staff of Team Spirit who genuinely believed that the team had a realistic chance of winning The International 10. The team that came out of nowhere to win TI10 has made a strong statement ahead of their title defense.īack at the start of October last year.
