Dota 2: The Midlaners At The International 12 And Their Signature Heroes #2
| Tags: Dota 2
| Author Zlosterr
Here are some of the best midlaners at The International 12 and the heroes that they usually go for.
The world’s best Dota 2 players will come together for The International 12 and will do everything they can to help their team win. Being a mid-laner is extremely difficult because you often need to carry the games for your team. Naturally, most of the midlaners are considered the stars of the team.
In the first part of our review, we’ve already covered some of the top-tier midlaners at The International 12 and what you need to be aware about them. However, considering there are 20 teams in total, there are many more to choose from. That’s why it’s time to learn more information about them.
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Cheng “NothingToSay” Jin Xiang – PSG.LGD
Even though PSG.LGD is a Chinese team and one of the few names that can defeat the best in Western Europe, one of the players is not Chinese. We’re talking about the club’s player called NothingToSa, one of the top midlaners at The International 12.
What’s interesting about the 22-year-old is that he’s often regarded as the best player in Southeast Asia. Despite his age, he already reached 12K MMR and has won a lot of events over the years. The player has been a part of LGD since 2020, but he became an official member in 2023 because he was on loan from EHOME.
NothingToSay is a classic midlaner capable of playing with a lot of heroes. However, there are a couple of interesting names he’s mostly known for, such as:
Abed “Abed” Yusop – Shopify Rebellion
When talking about amazing midlaners from SEA, we also need to address Abed. The latter is probably one of the most famous players in his part of the world because he has made a name for himself over the years. Abed is a 23-year-old midder that rose to face many years ago when he dominated games with Meepo and Invoker.
Over the years, Abed players for a couple of big teams. Starting with Execration in 2016, he was also a part of Digital Chaos and Fnatic. His most recent team is Evil Geniuses, which changed its organization to Shopify Rebellion.
Abed is one of those midders that can make anything work. If we put aside the heroes mentioned above, he’s also famous for several other options. No wonder a lot of people regard him as the top midlaner at The International 12.
Rafli “Mikoto” Fathur Rahman – Talon Esports
A lot of people underestimate Talon Esports and think they won’t do well at The International 12. However, considering the team has players like Mikoto, who’s one of the top midlaners at The International 12, the team can succeed.
Mikoto is a 23-year-old player from Indonesia who can also play Position 1 when needed. His career began in 2017 with Pandora Esports, but he has always been a part of BOOM Esports and Talon Esports. Mikoto joined the SEA powerhouse in 2021 and achieved a lot of surprising results so far, including 3rd place at the Riyadh Masters 2023.
Considering this player is also a carry, he usually focuses on the farming midders. This includes names like:
Gonzalo “DarkMago” Herrera
DarkMago is a very interesting mid-laner that’s a part of beastcoast and is known as one of the best in South America. He can play with a lot of heroes, but what makes him more special is that he focuses on utility midders. Nevertheless, you can often find him on some of the standard midders that other players choose.
One of the reasons why DarkMago is considered a top tier midlaners at The International 12 is because of his ability to adapt. We’ve seen in situations where he can’t do much, but he always finds a way to make something work. No wonder he’s been a part of almost every top-tier South American Dota 2 team.
Starting with Vicious Gaming, he also played for Omega Gaming, NoPing e-sports, and Thunder Awaken. He was a part of the latter for around 1 year, but since Evil Geniuses joined the scene, he decided to move to beastcoast.
In terms of the heroes DarkMago is known for, the list includes options like:
Denis “Larl” Sigitov – Team Spirit
There is no arguing that Team Spirit will be one of the main favorites to win The International 12. Although the squad’s results have not been the best this year, it won the Riyadh Masters 2023. This puts the team in a really good position because it is regarded as one of the favorites.
Everyone from Team Spirit is doing really well, but Larl is one of the names that stands out. This top midlaner at The International 12 became a part of the squad in late 2022, but he quickly made a name for himself. He had to replace TORONTOKYO because the player decided to move to BetBoom.
Larls can play with a wide range of heroes, but he’s mostly famous for these:
Jonathan “Bryle” Santos – TSM
The last player on the list that we want to talk about is Bryle, one of North America’s stars. The 22-year-old is yet to win a big international competition, but he has been a part of several big teams in his career. In addition to J.Storm, Bryle played for Team Undying, Digital Chaos, and Animal Planet.
In 2022, he became a part of the reformed TSM, and his squad quickly became one of the best in North America. It even reached the final of a Major, but it wasn’t able to defeat OG and lost the match.
Bryle is a classic midlaner known for his love for farming and snowballing heroes. He’s a difficult opponent to play against, especially when he’s on one of the following heroes:
Zlosterr has been a fan of esports for many years and mainly focuses on Dota 2. He has more than five years of experience writing Dota 2 content for numerous platforms. Besides being a passionate fan of the game, he's also played for various amateur teams.