Despite fierce competition in the Dew Arena 3.0, finally ROG TiTans emerged as the winners of the tournament, and much of their success can be attributed to the team's captain and support, Bari “ZeDisBuGG" Anwar, who has been crucial to the team’s success pulling off some incredible plays while showcasing great decision making.
AFK Gaming managed to catch up with him and we had a small chat about the Indian Dota 2 scene, his goals and a few other topics you may find interesting.
Q. Hi ZeDisBuGG, How are you doing? First off, can you introduce yourself to the few who don’t know you?
A. Hi guys!.... I am Bari Anwar aka ZeDisBuGG. I am a Dota 2 Professional playing for Team ROG.TiTans in the Support role
Q. We would like to congratulate you and your team on your triumph in Dew Arena 3.0. How does it feel winning a premier LAN, after well over a year?
A. It is an amazing feeling winning after so long. But more importantly, we got a much-needed confidence boost for the upcoming LANs.
Q. We heard that you had to play through a Kidney Stone infection to secure the title. Are you okay now? Did the pain prove to be a hindrance?
A. Yes, I did have kidney stones infection and I am getting treatment for it in Hyderabad as of now, but when I was playing I had to ignore the pain and focus in-game. It was something I couldn't control but I am happy that we won and it didn't affect my team's performance or results.
(See Also: ROG TiTans triumph in Dew Arena 3.0)
Q. Let’s talk about the Grand Finals. LXG Esports has been somewhat of a roadblock for you in Dew Arena 3.0, considering that they beat you in the Qualifiers #1, in the Group Stages, as well as Game 1 of the Grand Finals. How did you finally surpass this particular obstacle?
A. LXG has always successfully used the 4 protect one strategy against us because we have a weakness of ending games on time, so it always favoured LXG strategy wise. But we had a good healthy discussion on what we should do to overcome our mistakes and it did prove to be the changing factor. It was Evilash and A35 who did most of the hard work in discussing and coming up with a strategy.
Q. Speaking of Game 1, we saw multiple Rapiers from your team. I think most of the Indian Dota 2 scene would agree that ZxC has a soft spot for Rapiers. Has that fondness spread to the rest of the team as well? Or has it always been a team decision to pick up rapiers to close out games?
A. He has a habit of going all in or nothing so it is like a double-edged sword, it works sometimes and sometimes it backfires. No wonder we are known for throwing 20k-40k advantage games xD.
But his performance in the next 2 games were key reasons for our victory.
Q. What changed in Game 2? Did your team make any adjustments in the way you played the game?
A. We changed our drafting style and got our best heroes and banned their most played heroes. This pushed LXG into a spot where they had to play a new set of heroes and we took advantage of that.
Q. So next up is ESL India Premiership - Fall Season Finale, and the Taiwan Excellence Gaming Cup 2018. Do you think the momentum from the Dew Arena 3.0 triumph will propel you to perform even better in these tournaments?
A. Definitely, we got a lot of confidence from this much-needed victory. We also have Signify coming to the ESL India Premiership - Fall Season Finale so we will have to change and rethink a lot of our strategies in a short time for these events. Hopefully, we get the first ESL India trophy for ROG Titans.
Q. How do you feel about Dreamhack coming over to Mumbai, and hosting an event here? What does it mean to you as an esports professional, and as a gamer?
A. Its freaking amazing, the esports scene is rapidly growing in India and Dreamhack coming to India is a proof of that. Hopefully, we will get to play in that prestigious event.
Q. What is the biggest hurdle stopping you from becoming a major SEA powerhouse? How do you plan to overcome it?
A. We need a coach who can make the difference and also the players' mentality should change. We definitely have the talent required, we just need the right training, coaching and dedication from players.
Q. What about practice? How often did you scrim as preparation for these tournaments and how long were your sessions? Have you prepared particular strategies against particular teams?
A. Normally we play 4 hours of scrims but before coming for the Dew Arena we practised for 8 hours a day to make sure we are in our best form. We have worked hard and have researched the strategy and play style of LXG and Signify.
Q. What does it mean to be one of the few players who can be called professional esports players?
A. It is a dream of many players but very few get to live it. It was never easy for any of us though. We have all had to sacrifice many things to do what we love. Hopefully, we will see the road to becoming a professional esports player in India get a bit easier for the younger generation.
Q. Nelson Mandela once said ‘I never lose. I either win or learn’, what have you learnt from the previous year with ROG TiTans?
A. I learnt that the best teams are not made of the best players. It's made with the players who learn, grow and think alike.
Q. What are your personal short-term and long-term goals?
A. My short-term goal is to win Indian LAN events and my long-term goal is to reach top 50 in leaderboards and to play in a Major/Minor.
Q. Out of game, what is team chemistry like? Do you take part in any team building activities in your spare time?
A. Out of game??...what is that….we game all the time hahahaha….but yes we have these walks in the park daily where we discuss about the scrims we played.
Q. Finally, what does ZeDisBuGG do when he isn’t playing Dota?
A. Preparing food for myself, watching anime, annoying Moin ‘No_Chanc3’ Ejaz on discord, and watching twitch.
Q. That's all from our end ZeDisBuGG. Thank you so much for your time! Do you have any Shoutouts you'd like to add here?
A. Shoutout to my family for supporting me..…shoutout to red…...shoutout to the people who have always believed in our team and kept supporting us.