Chinese Dota 2 Star Paparazi Retires from Xtreme Gaming
One of Chinese Dota’s top midlaners, Zhang “Paparazi灬” Chengjun, has announced his retirement from Xtreme Gaming. Paparazi, who has competed in four consecutive iterations of The International, including TI7, made the decision to retire after failing to qualify for TI11. Despite playing another year for XG due to health issues, Paparazi has finally decided to hang up his mouse and keyboard.
However, XG has struggled this season, with only one Major qualification and an early elimination in the playoffs. With the team failing to secure enough points to qualify directly for TI12, and a disappointing 15th place finish at Riyadh Masters 2023, Paparazi felt it was time to call it quits. It is worth noting that Paparazi had expressed his desire to retire as early as July 5, according to rumors circulating in the Dota 2 community.
Paparazi had actually informed XG of his retirement plans following TI11 in October 2022, citing physical issues as the reason. However, he stayed with the team for another season due to their need for his skills. It remains to be seen if this retirement will stick.
In light of Paparazi’s retirement, XG has signed Guo “Xm” Hongcheng, a veteran midlaner formerly associated with teams like Vici and EHOME. This roster change could potentially impact teams like Team Aster, Invictus Gaming, and Azure Ray, as XG now has to adjust to a new player just before the TI qualifiers, providing an opportunity for their rivals to secure the final spot for the China region.
Related: Ceb leaves ‘EU retirement home’ to officially rejoin OG’s Dota 2 roster
Chinese Dota 2, Paparazi灬, retirement, Xtreme Gaming, midlaner, The International, TI11, rumors, physical issues, Guo “Xm” Hongcheng, Team Aster, Invictus Gaming, Azure Ray, TI qualifiers