This year is definitely going down in Dota 2 history. Not only did we see some of the most interesting series in years, but for the first time ever, we have a back-to-back TI champion, something that many people thought it is impossible. With that said, let’s take a look at the top 5 Dota 2 Teams of 2019.
5) – Virtus.Pro
The first team on our list might surprise some of our readers, however, they definitely deserve to be here. Virtus.Pro has been one of the most consistent teams of the last couple of years. They’ve built a substantial roster around Roman “RAMZES666” Kushnarev and Vladimir “No[o]ne” Minenko who are some of the best core players in the world.
However, similar to the previous DPC season, the team completely crumbled at TI. Before that, they’ve absolutely dominated the DPC by winning one Major and getting two second-place finishes in others. Unfortunately, this didn’t matter at all because VP played like a tier two team at TI 9.
After the disappointing finish, the organization decided that it’s time to change something. As a result, Roman and Pavel “9pasha” Khvastunov left the roster in favour of Evil Geniuses and Natus Vincere. Despite these changes, VP is not looking any better right now. In fact, they squeezed through qualification for the Leipzig Major.
We can only hope that this legendary CIS team will bounce back in the upcoming months.
4) Team Secret
The Chinese powerhouse Vici Gaming was definitely the best team this year from the region. In fact, they were one of the most successful teams of the 2018-2019 DPC season, where they won two Majors. Unfortunately, a mediocre placement at TI 9 will prevent them from getting a higher position in our rankings.
Led by Zhang “Eurus” Chengjun, Vici Gaming is definitely a fierce enemy. After winning the EPICENTER Major, DreamLeague Season 11, TI 4 runner ups also won ImbaTV’s Minor and most recently, finished second in the MDL Chengdu Major. These results are a clear sign of Vici’s consistency throughout 2019.
3) Team Secret
Team Secret has always been one of the best teams when it comes down to the DPC. However, not only did they finished first in the DPC last season, but they also won nearly every non-DPC tournament as well.
The European giants outplayed every single team when it comes down to picks and team fight execution. Once again, they were considered favourites to win TI. Unfortunately, this didn’t happen, perhaps the pressure of expectation got too much.
The most underperforming player during this tournament was Yeik “MidOne” Nai Zheng. Even though he was one of the best mid laners of 2019, at TI, he was a shadow of the player know, and love. As a result, Yeik left the team just a couple of months after TI 9 concluded.
2) Team Liquid/Nigma
The silver medal goes to one of the most beloved teams in esports – Nigma (Team Liquid). Kuro “KuroKy” Salehi Takhasomi and his team-mates were one of the most consistent teams in Dota 2. Even though they didn’t win any Majors last DPC, Liquid finished second at the EPICENTER Major and the MDL Paris Major.
They continued to improve their performance during the season and everything was going great. However, at one point, Liquid announced their decision to remove Lasse Aukusti “MATUMBAMAN” Urpalainen from their team. Needless to say, this came as a shock for most fans because Matu is one of their most beloved players.
Many of Liquid’s fans thought that the team would disband, but that didn’t happen. Matu’s replacement was Aliwi “w33” Omar, who has proved himself numerous times throughout the years. Even though he only played with his new team for a couple of weeks, w33 was one of the stars of the TI 9.
Despite dropping in the Lower Bracket, Team Liquid ripped through everyone and reached the Grand Final. Sadly, they were no match for the innovative and deadly OG, who won their second TI in a row.
After the event came to an end, Kuro and his team-mates announced that they would leave Team Liquid and form their organization. Fast-forward a couple of months later, and we now have Nigma.
1) OG
No surprises here, OG is no.1 in our top 5 Dota 2 teams of 2019! This year they have completely re-written the history of the game after winning two consecutive TIs in a row. Prior to this year, no one could even imagine that a team is capable of winning two TIs, let alone consecutively. However, OG proved that with enough practice and team-work, anything is possible.
However, apart from playing absolutely awesome as a team, two of their players definitely stand out. Anathan “ana” Pham & Topias Miikka “Topson” Taavitsainen are perhaps the best players in the world right now. Both of them have only played for a couple of years on the professional stage, but despite that, they’ve already written their names with gold letters in Dota 2’s history.
Conclusion
In our opinion, these were the top 5 Dota 2 teams of 2019. Right now, the professional Dota 2 stage is slowing down a little bit, especially since Christmas is here soon. However, once 2020 starts, we will be back in action with full force.
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Feature image courtesy of EPICENTER
