The first Major of the 2019-2020 DPC, MDL Chengdu, is over a week full of action. Although some of the best teams decided to skip it (notably Natus Vincere, Team Secret, and OG), this tournament will be remembered a long time. After all, this was the second Dota Pro Circuit tournament won by a Southeast Asian team, and also the last big event played on patch 7.22h.
However, if you didn’t have the chance to watch it, here are three things you should know:
TNC is the best team (in their region)
TNC has always been a very dangerous enemy. However, after their roster changes in the last few months, they’ve definitely stepped up their performance. We can safely say that they are the best team in SEA, and their results speak for themselves.
Within the span of just a month, the team won ESL One Hamburg 2019 along with the MDL Chengdu Major. Despite their success, in order to receive full “recognition”, they still needed to prove themselves against the best teams in the world. This means that the next Major is going to be extremely interesting – once the likes of Team Secret, ex-Liquid, and OG are back.
Morphling and Earthshaker was a must ban at MDL Chengdu
If you watched any series in MDL Chengdu, you know what we’re talking about. This simple yet ultra-effective combo is absolutely broken right now. TNC is a clear example after they utilized the combo to its full potential in game four of the Grand Finals.
If you are looking for a fast way to gain MMR, look no further. However, you need to hurry up because if the rumours are true, the Outlanders Update will be out tomorrow, and the combo will likely be nerfed in a big way. This means that you have less than a day to try it out if you haven’t yet.
Evil Geniuses is back! (sort of…)
Evil Geniuses has been the best team in North America ever since they started to compete on the big stage. Unlike other teams, they didn’t see many changes to their roster throughout the years, with only a few exceptions. Nevertheless, something had to change after they failed to win a single tournament in the last DPC. Although they finished top four in nearly every event, they seemed to lack that “ending punch” needed to secure the trophy.
As a result, the NA organization took a controversial decision and swapped Syed Sumail “SumaiL” Hassan and Gustav “s4” Magnusson for Abed Azel L. Yusop and Roman “RAMZES666” Kushnarev. This decision seemed strange to many at the time, but so far it seems to be working out.
Although EG didn’t win MDL Chengdu, they’ve shown everyone that they’re a tough opponent. It’s safe to say that it’s only a matter of time before they explode out of control and start winning big tournaments again.
Keep up with all the news post MLD Chengdu on Dartfrog’s Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitch, the best source for all the latest Dota 2 news.
