Over the decade, the SE Asia region has earned a reputation as a treacherous region for any team to stay on top. Hence, it was no surprise when the Chengdu Major 2019 champion, TNC Predator, dropped their captain, Park “March” Tae-won, from their active line-up.
Meanwhile, we witness a vast selection of teams emerging and taking down the more seasoned teams in the scene.
TNC Predator drops March
If we are to take official rankings into account, TNC Predator currently holds first-place on the Dota 2 Pro Circuit leaderboards. Having won the first major of the season, TNC Predator was the first SEA team to win a Valve-sponsored major.
Yet, TNC’s glory days were numbered ever since then. It didn’t take long before regional leagues were introduced, and even among its local rivals, TNC couldn’t hold its own. After countless of unsuccessful runs in every tournament, TNC finally released their captain, March.
While the news didn’t come as much of a surprise to many, prominent Dota 2 figure, Kyle “Kyle” Freedman, begs to differ about TNC’s decision. Perhaps Kyle does have a point here, as TNC’s line-up consists of very talented players. Their recent performance may not be all about winning first-place every time, but they do occasionally win some.
Frankly, it’s just such a bummer to see the talented veteran player out of TNC Predator.
The New Champions.
As the giants fall off, there’s a new generation of prodigies in town. Over at the BTS Pro Series S3 SEA, nobody expected the Thai squad, Motivate.Trust Gaming, to come out as the victors. Even so, their rivals in the finals were no other than BOOM Esports, an Indonesian team that has been consistently improving.
Nonetheless, fans were surprised at the fact that the top 5 teams in the BTS tournament were not the likes of Fnatic or TNC Predator. A good indication that the region’s competitive scene is ever so volatile as teams continuously fight for the power struggle.
Not implying that the third-party tournaments are enough to sustain the tier-2 scene here. Hence, until Valve announces their fresh take on regional tournaments, SEA teams can still stay afloat during these trying times.
Another one bites the dust.
Speaking of giants, the UK-based Esports org, Fnatic is struggling to find their fit in the SEA scene. Although they are still on every tournament invitee white-list, their performance certainly does not do them any justice. For instance, Fnatic placed last at the BTS Pro Series S3 SEA after a whopping 7 losses, and no wins to brag about.
The constant roster shuffle since they placed second at ONE Esports SEA League, has only brought them blunders. From removing young Thai prodigy, 23savage, to getting rid of their 2-year captain, Jabz. Some fans would even go as far as to say that Fnatic is a lost cause at this point.
Yet, it’s just upsetting to see such a prominent team kick the bucket after one lost grand finals, going as far to indirectly ruin their rival’s line-up as well. Fnatic took in Marc Polo Luis “Raven” Fausto from Geek Fam, who won the ONE Esports SEA League.
23savage’s depressing tweet.
In other news, Nuengnara “23savage” Teeramahanon, former Fnatic player, tweeted a rather questionable tweet. He wrote, “I’m sad because I’m bad” right after losing the BTS Pro Series S3 SEA.
Last week, 23savage decided to team up with a temporary stack of former Geek Fam players, Abed and Jabz, presumably for one last hurrah. Although team Among Us was anticipating an undisputable first-place victory, they were unexpectedly halted by BOOM Esports and Motivate.Trust Gaming.
Regardless, 23savage will be heading for China, where he will begin his new career in Vici Gaming. We wish him all the best in his future endeavors.
