The StarLadder ImbaTV Dota 2 Minor Season 3 is just a few days away. By the end of the week, one team will advance to the ESL One Los Angeles Major.
Today we look at the favourites for the Minor event.
Alliance
Alliance were a bit lost for quite some time, only occasionally making fans remember that they still exist. All of that changes when the Swedish organization revamped their reputation as they picked an entirely new roster in October which remains unchanged:
- Nikolay "Nikobaby" Nikolov
- Linus "Limmp" Blomdin
- Neta "33" Shapira
- Simon "Handsken" Haag
- Adrian "Fata" Trinks
Ever since then the team’s been on the rise finishing near the top in the events we’ve seen so far. Most recently we saw them during the DreamLeague Season 13 Leipzig Major where Alliance took 4th place. Nikolay "Nikobaby" Nikolov was also considered to be one of the best carries throughout the tournament and maybe currently in the pro scene. The team’s also still coached by Jonathan "Loda" Berg who was part of the Alliance roster which won The International 2013.
Gambit Esports
The CIS team has been quite popular in the last few years. Appearing in almost every event organized by WePlay! Gambit were a thorn in OG’s side, defeating the TI-winners multiple times. A couple of changes to the roster were made in 2019 after Gambit failed to qualify for The International. The current squad is as follows:
- Kiyalbek "dream`" Tayirov
- Danil "gpk" Skutin
- Maxim "Shachlo" Abramovskikh
- Danial "XSvamp1Re" Alibaev
- Artsiom "fng" Barshak
Despite not making it to the most prestigious event, 2019 was a good year for Gambit and they’re certainly back for more titles in 2020. Most recently the team placed 4th in the WePlay! Bukovel Minor and 4th in the WePlay! Tug of War: Mad Moon.
Team Aster
Team Aster was founded by Xu "BurNIng" Zhilei who’s considered to be one of the best and most experienced carry players in the world. The organization had its ups and downs over its 2-year lifespan and still struggles to make a name for itself in the Chinese scene. Then again the China region is one of the toughest to make it into. Much like any other team, Aster did some roster changes after The International 2019 and swapped some of their players:
- Song "Sccc" Chun
- Kee Chyuan "ChYuan" Ng
- Lin "Xxs" Jing
- Ye "BoBoKa" Zhibiao
- Pan "Fade" Yi
Team Aster might not have any recent achievements to show off with but still remain one of the recognizable teams from the Chinese scene.
What do you think about our picks? Do you agree? Feel free to leave a comment below.
The StarLadder ImbaTV Dota 2 Minor Season will commence this Thursday, with $300,000 and 660 DPC on the line.
