Team Heretics’ MiniBoo will miss VALORANT Masters Shanghai due to burnout
Team Heretics’ Dominykas “MiniBoo” Lukaševičius will not be attending VALORANT Masters Shanghai next month, the organization stated today. The squad has chosen to give him a break from competing after he showed signs of burnout and tiredness in recent weeks.
Decision was made after MiniBoo’s condition failed to improve
In the team’s statement put out this morning, Heretics said his condition was not improving during the final days of the VCT EMEA Stage One playoffs, leading the org to make the “hard but correct decision” to temporarily move MiniBoo to the bench. The VALORANT roster status for Heretics at Masters Shanghai has not yet been confirmed, but it is likely to be announced shortly.
MiniBoo suffered from a demanding schedule
MiniBoo has had one of the most demanding schedules of any professional player this season. Team Heretics has had a busy schedule, having made deep runs at EMEA Kickoff and Stage One while qualifying for two international competitions. MiniBoo, who is only 18 years old, is also “balancing everything with his schoolwork.”
Burnout Concerns in the Valorant Pro Scene
Concerns concerning pro VALORANT player fatigue, particularly in this confined season among the best teams, have been raised since before the 2023 season even ended. The most significant issue with the schedule has been a lack of respite between tournaments, which is exacerbated for teams that qualify for international events, such as Team Heretics. In today’s announcement, heretics pointed up a lack of “appropriate breaks.”
Relief is expected in 2025, with a better schedule
Proper relief will not come until 2025, when the schedule is expected to be adequately spread out throughout the entire year. While he did not provide specifics, head of VALORANT esports Leo Faria stated in December that the current competitive calendar is “a little too tight from February to August and sparse from September to January.”
Other teams to keep an eye on for potential player breaks this season include Edward Gaming, FPX, Paper Rex, and Gen.G, all of which have qualified for both international events in between spells of VCT league play.