The Upset in CIS Qualifiers for the MDL Chengdu Major
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The first major upset of the new Dota Pro Circuit season occurred in the CIS closed qualifiers for the MDL Chengdu Major when Virtus Pro was eliminated in the second round of the group stage.
Despite dominating the regular season last year, Virtus Pro made significant roster changes, which resulted in a disappointing start to their campaign. Their only series win came from a team forfeit.
In the closed qualifiers, only six actual organizations participated, with the other four spots being filled by specially formed teams for the event. Normally, a team like VP would be expected to move forward after dropping at most a single game, but that was not the case as VP received a win due to MY MUTANTI’s withdrawal from the tournament.
In the next three series, VP split two 1-1 with Old But Gold, a team of veterans who have struggled to stay relevant, and Viet Flashbacks, a newer stack of smaller CIS players. This contrast highlighted the impact of removing three players from last year’s roster.
Currently, Alexey “Solo” Berezin is captaining a completely new team with only Vladimir “No[o]ne” Minenko remaining from the previous lineup. The addition of Roman “Resolut1on” Fominok brings new opportunities, but the team hasn’t had enough time to fully utilize his skills. In addition, the team is using two stand-ins.
Although there were brief moments of potential against the new HellRaisers roster, VP still suffered a 2-0 defeat and were knocked out of contention for the Major.
The true potential of the new VP roster will likely be seen once Solo and the team find their final two players and have a proper bootcamp, which is expected to happen before the start of the next Major qualifiers.
Despite their early elimination, VP managed to secure a spot in the CIS qualifiers for the upcoming Dota Summit 11 Minor, giving them another chance to qualify for the Major.
The CIS region is shaping up to be a tough competition this season, with smaller organizations beating both VP and Natus Vincere in the quest for Major spots.
CIS closed qualifiers, MDL Chengdu Major, Virtus Pro, Dota Pro Circuit, roster changes, fighting bears, series win, forfeit, organizations, stacks, MY MUTANTI, series split, Old But Gold, Viet Flashbacks, Solo, No[o]ne, Resolut1on, stand-ins, bootcamp, HellRaisers, CIS region, Dota Summit 11 Minor, Natus Vincere.