9Pandas MieRo reveals champion duo he dreads facing ahead of TI debut

Matvey ‘MieRo’ Vasyunin expressed his excitement at playing on Dota’s biggest stage as one of 9Pandas’ three first-timers. The Russian offlaner also revealed which laning duo he would rather avoid and shared his thoughts on the DPC.

9Pandas is a fairly new Dota 2 organization comprised entirely of Russian players. Although the team hasn’t won any silverware this year, its roster has certainly shown some explosive performances against teams regarded as favorites.

Featuring a balanced mix of experience and rising talent, 9Pandas is definitely a force to be reckoned with. Ahead of DreamLeague Season 21, MieRo chatted with Dexerto and spoke at length about various subjects, such as the DPC, the evolution of Dota, and his experience this season with the team.

MieRo about the ongoing season and 9Pandas’ chances at DreamLeague Season 21 and TI12

With a third-place finish at the ESL One Berlin Major as the highlight of a season in which the team has had multiple 5th-6th place finishes, MieRo and 9Pandas have had a bumpy season.

But the Russian offlaner won’t let that take away from a major milestone in his career. As he prepares to play his first TI, MieRo says that he is very “excited” to set foot on Dota’s biggest stage. Gleb ‘kiyotaka’ Zyryanov and Vladislav ‘Antares’ Kertman are also TI debutants, while Alexey ‘Solo’ Berezin and Roman ‘RAMZES666’ Kushnarev have each attended four events.

“We were getting some weekends [off] before this DreamLeague,” he said. “That was for around one month. Now we are ready to play a lot with our team. So we’re going to train a lot and get into form. Our team form is much better [for TI].

“I think Ramzes and Solo have given us a lot because we are young players and didn’t have much experience with competitive Dota. But this year, we realized some new things and became stronger as humans, and as players. I really want to say thanks to them for all they have done.”

Problems with the DPC and MieRo’s feelings about recent Dota 2 changes

The format and structure of the previous Dota Pro Circuit, more commonly known as the DPC, had raised several questions and led to discussions amongst the community and pro players. The DPC had plenty of shortcomings, from extremely cramped schedules for online Regional Leagues to a drastic reduction in the number of global LAN tournaments.

Although the structure ensured regular competitive Dota and provided more clarity and transparency for teams earning a spot at TI, it was causing more damage than growth. Valve recently confirmed that the current DPC structure and format will end after TI12, and qualification for The International will go back to an invitational structure – a change that community and pro players have welcomed.

“This season was really hard for most of the teams because the tournaments came one after the other, and we didn’t have much time to rest,” the Russian offlaner said. “I think this season, I was chilling for around one week only, and the rest of the time, I was playing with the team or I was bootcamping. I didn’t even go home, only twice for two or three days. And yeah, that was a hard season, but I think it’s okay.”

“They [Valve] want to make some great stuff, and Dota is getting better with every update, I enjoy them. So I hope Dota gets better and better all the time. I like the changes. Sometimes maybe not, but I like most of the updates.”

MieRo reveals who he doesn’t like laning against

Being an offlaner, MieRo’s primary role during the laning stage is to trade HP with the opponent’s carry and give them a difficult time in lane. There is one laning duo in particular that he doesn’t like to play against.

“Team Spirit, Yatoro, and Miposhka,” he said. “They play really stable, and you cannot press them a lot because you cannot reach them as they’re not making many mistakes.

“Also, maybe at the start of the season, I didn’t like to play against Liquid. At the Lima Major at the start of the year, it was the strongest lane. They were in great form. It’s much easier, much easier [now].”

With The International kicking off in less than four weeks, it seems inevitable that MieRo and 9Pandas are poised to hit their stride. Whether this balance of experience and raw talent will be enough to carry 9Pandas on to victory or not is something that we will have to wait until the Ancients explode at DreamLeague Season 21 and The International 2023.