"This time my goal is to win TI."

The International is the apex of competitive Dota 2, and no time is more important than the months that lead up to the biggest, most lucrative single tournament in esports. For the world’s best players, a ticket to Seattle is a culmination of all their time and effort—it is a tournament that changes lives. The most successful teams are invited, while the rest are forced to trudge their way through the gauntlet of regional qualifiers.

MinD_ContRoL isn’t phased either way. "I think even if we don't get invited, it's still fine. We're pretty confident to play in the qualifiers. We're ready for that and don't expect to be invited," he admitted, before letting out a hearty laugh. There's a confidence in him that had gone missing after The International 2016, and for the most part, he and Liquid have regained their stature. A measure of introspection has done wonders for the team.

"I think we went there as a favourite. One of the top two I guess; OG and Liquid, we were the best teams going there. But then at TI we choked, especially me. It was my first TI and I wasn’t ready at all for this tournament so I played very bad the whole tournament."

For MC, TI6 was more than just a poor performance. "I choked," he repeated, "I think if I did my job we probably would have made top 3. That’s how I feel about it anyway." However, MC has not allowed himself to be overcome by the negative emotions that defeat can often bring. Instead he, alongside his Liquid teammates, has refocused and accepted that failure is a learning experience. Most of all MC genuinely enjoys the competition and playing in front of the world’s largest crowds. "Yeah that’s why I play, one of the main reasons."


***

Once the hangover of TI6 had subsided, everyone turned their attentions to the inevitable merry-go-round of player transfers and team swaps. Liquid was no exception; Adrian “Fata” Trinks and Jesse “JerAx” Vainikka both departed after their disappointing run. Both players were integral to the way Liquid played, and speculation about their potential replacements ran rampant. Soon after, Liquid acquired midlane superstar Amer “Miracle-” Al-Barkawi to much fanfare before adding Kanishka “BuLba” Sosale in the support role. Expectations were high, but the roster failed to make it to the Boston Major. It was clear that there were issues and something had to be done.

“Before the change… things weren’t working out. Bulba was trying to lead the team a lot but we already had a leader so… you can’t have two leaders in a team and that’s what happened. You can’t have two leaders—it’s impossible like that,” MinD_ContRoL explained. His tone was serious and critical but without blame. It was a situation that couldn’t be resolved with a simple fix.

The team was in two minds—surely, two brilliant minds—, and it showed clearly in their games. Liquid struggled to find an approach that suited the new roster, and the problem was amplified by the mixed advice that the players would sometimes receive. “A lot of arguing,” MC revealed when asked about the team’s atmosphere, “It’s pretty annoying to listen to. You can’t listen because one of them will tell you one thing and the other will tell you something completely different. It’s hard to play like that; you have to listen to only one person.”

Soon, it became clear that the team had a square peg in a round hole. Liquid already had a leader in KuroKy and did not need another. Although BuLba is considered one of the brightest minds in Dota by his peers, his greatest strengths were not necessary on a team that was anchored by someone with similar attributes. In addition, Liquid’s weaknesses became clear during this period, and the squad was brought down to critical condition. It was a case of the team needing a regen rune as opposed to double damage, and they had to find someone who would better complement their system.

MinD_ContRoL continued to believe in his team and in himself, knowing if he stayed resilient it would eventually bear fruit. “I just played and enjoyed the game. I knew I was losing a lot but I knew it would pay off if I kept going.”

With recent failures in mind, the team parted ways with BuLba and brought in the relatively unknown Lebanese player, Maroun “GH” Merhej. As a stand-in for the team at DreamLeague Season 6, Liquid’s new support delivered almost instantaneous change—and a title at the event. While the team still experienced some fluctuations in form, progress was undeniable. A few months later, Liquid won another title at StarLadder i-League Season 3 against top tier competition.

“We already had [our confidence],” MC confessed about the effect of GH, “We played a bit online with GH. Actually, I know GH from Dota 1; I played with him a long time ago, like 7 or 8 years ago so I know him pretty well. I was pretty good with him anyway and I was confident we would do well.”

Still, the team faced a few setbacks, most notably at the Kiev Major and DAC 2017. MC offered a frank explanation of what happened in their return to Shanghai: “There was no goal. We didn’t have any strategy going into DAC because we had no practice. We had very little practice so that’s our mistake and we got punished for it and finished last place.” Liquid understood that they could not be caught unprepared once again. “We just practiced more. We practiced together a lot and figured out how to play the game together.”

Unfortunately, the Kiev Major came too soon. Without a lower bracket, a close series against iG in the quarterfinals resulted in a harsh exit for Team Liquid. For some, it suggested that it was back to square one for a squad that looked like it was on the brink of a revelatory tournament. For the team, however, it just meant that more work had to be done.

Three weeks later, Liquid traveled to Shanghai for StarLader i-League Invitational #2. After an uneventful group stage, Liquid earned a rematch against the team that had dumped them out of the previous Major, iG. Just like in Kiev, they found themselves down one game after the first hour of play and falling behind with their tournament lives on the line. MC laughed when asked about the game, “Oh right, it was the ratting bear!” He recalled the aghs bear of Matumbaman taking mega creeps while the rest of the team defended a push.

“I think you can give a lot of props to Matu there. He saved us there. He saved that tournament for us,” MC admitted. “He just ratted them. I don’t know how we won that game and I’m serious. When Bristle gets completely ****ed like that it’s hard to recover, honestly. I know the weakness of that hero and it’s very hard to recover and Matu pretty much saved the game by himself.”

When asked about the counters to his Bristleback that game MC laughed, “Yeah they had Razor and Legion as well, they had many counters.” iG had put too much emphasis on MinD_ContRoL, however, and Liquid was able to win the series 2-1 and move on to the finals against TnC.

With the StarLadder title on the line, their plan was simple. “We just wanted to outplay them because we knew we were better as a team. I guess that’s a bit cocky but that’s fine,” MC disclosed, “I thought we could just win against them.” In reality, TnC proved a worthy adversary; the two teams traded blows to reach a deciding final game. In a show of confidence, Liquid allowed TnC to pick one of their signature heroes, Jakiro, which had been first phase banned in 4 straight games. Fortunately, we had the Bear and Invoker. “[They had] Wisp and Jakiro,” MC recalled, “They played it very well.”

Team Liquid managed to take down TnC’s Jakiro and win the finals of StarLadder i-League Invitational #2. It was the first big tournament after the Kiev Major and the first tournament in the gauntlet of events that preceded TI7. The importance of winning an event during the months between the last Valve Major and The International cannot be understated.

With one foot in the Key Arena doors, Liquid needed one more statement to earn their way to Seattle. Liquid made that statement and more in one of, if not the biggest non-Valve event of the year: EPICENTER. As the defending champions, the tournament in Moscow is more than just another feather in Liquid’s cap; it is the jewel in their crown. With MATUMBAMAN’s family in the audience, Liquid overcame a scrappy group stage in order to reach the finals. There, they trumped old rival Evil Geniuses 3-1 to repeat as EPICENTER champions.

And, they did it in style. “The first game, my team won 4vs5,” he said jubilantly, realizing that their win had more than likely earned them their invite to TI. “I didn’t even participate in that game, so I don’t know what happened.”

“Like I said previously, winning a tournament always feels like all the hard work paid off and this time was the same—it’s a great feeling.” More than a feeling of vindication, it is a feeling of pride. Pride in one’s achievements, and most of all, pride in one’s hard work. However, MinD_ContRoL knows that there is one more task ahead, one more tournament to conquer. The big one.

On June 19th, 2017, Valve announced its invites for The International, and Liquid was one of the chosen.

This all seems too familiar: One of the best teams in Dota, EPICENTER champions, invited to TI, a target on their backs. Yet will Liquid do anything differently this year? “It probably will change, but we don’t really care about that.” MC knows that preparation is important, but champions perform once they turn on the bright lights. With another year of professional Dota under his belt, MC is certain that he and the rest of Liquid can overcome the obstacles that will stand in their way come August.

“This time my goal is to win TI.”

It is a simple statement, an identifiable goal. Every professional Dota player has said these exact same words, but he has proven this year that no other player is like MinD_ContRoL. He is the everyman, but his own man at the same time. When he walks into the booth in front of that deafening crowd, to play the game he loves, he will know that he belongs.

And how will he prepare?

“Very simple, actually. I just play a lot of Dota.”