The International 2019 preview: Vici Gaming

The Chinese powerhouse is here and ready to claim the Aegis of Champions. Meet Vici Gaming!

Profile

Region: China

DPC placement: 3

DPC points earned: 11250

Notable Results: 

• EPICENTER Major — 1st place
• The DreamLeague Major — 1st place
• ESL One Hamburg 2018 — 2nd place

Roster:

1. Zhang “Paparazi” Chengjun  (China)
2. Zeng “Ori” Jiaoyang  (China)
3. Zhou “Yang” Haiyang  (China)
4. Pan “Fade” Yi (China)
5. Ding “Dy” Cong  (China)

Path to The International

After the International 2018 had concluded, Vici Gaming changed three players, so they definitely needed some time to build team chemistry. rOtk finished the tuning of his squad only before the third stage of Dota Pro Circuit. You should have seen their performance in Kiev and Stockholm! After their victory in EPICENTER Major, VG established themselves as one of the main favourites to win TI9.

They managed to grab a place in a top-8 in every Major this season — something that only Virtus.pro and PSG.LGD could also achieve. We believe that Vici Gaming is a strong contender to claim the Aegis of Champions!

Strong sides

• Discipline. Vici Gaming is really strict when it comes to gameplan execution. If players get comfortable hero draft and know what to do, it is very hard to do something against it.
• rOtk. Bai Fan was considered a good drafter back when he was a player. Now as a coach he continues showing the master class in strategy planning.
• Outstanding personal skill. Despite being often "a coach team", VG have outstanding players who crush the opponents with the help of their mastery.

 Weak sides

• Improvisation.  Vici Gaming is considered an elite team when we speak about preparation and planning. However, if you manage to surprize them with drafts, this might be your key to win. 
• The status of favourites. Considering everyone will be preparing against VG, the Chinese powerhouse will have some hard times. All they can do is to prepare to as many scenarios as possible. 

The X-factor

Paparazi.  One of the best core-players in the world keeps showing his mastery for several years. He is persistent, he is calm, he is that damn good! We are sure to have a couple of his highlights during TI9.

Our expectations

Top-4. To us, Vici Gaming are probably the biggest favourite to win the International. However, their lead against the other powerhouses is almost insignificant and we can see some surprises. Yet we strongly believe that VG won't have any big problems during the first couple of rounds at their home World Championship.

The International 2019 will take place in Shanghai on August 15 — 25. The current prize pool has overcome $31.500.000.