Cover-Credits:
As a result of being relegated to Division II for the first time in the team's history, Fnatic experienced arguably the worst Dota 2 season in the Dota Pro Circuit (DPC) Southeast Asia (SEA) 2023 Tour 1: Division I. While it is a tough period for the most reputed Dota 2 organization in the region, the players on the team are also some of the most prolific names, making the result equally difficult and frustrating for them. The team won only one series in the season, after which offlaner Damien "kpii" Chok expressed his thoughts on the relegation. As kpii described, while he previously played in Division II, facing the demotion to a lower Division for the first time really stung and upset him.
“That’s probably the worst I have felt in many years,” says kpii on Division II relegation
After losing six consecutive series in the DPC SEA 2023 Tour 3: Division I, Fnatic finally opened its account in its last series versus Talon Esports by winning 2-0, but it didn't matter as the relegation had been determined,
As part of the post-match winner's interview, kpii was asked about his thoughts on the demotion because of Fnatic’s struggle throughout the season.
Once it was confirmed that the team would not be able to stay in Division 1, kpii played several games in a row in frustration, losing most of them. He noted that the past few days have been some of the toughest of his competitive Dota 2 career.
“I am okay because I was in Division II for two seasons last year so it’s okay for me. But I have never really dropped to Division II. Two days ago, I was pretty upset. That’s probably the worst I have felt in many years. It just felt so bad. Then I just raged, played pubs, and lost 10 million games in a row. I think the others - obviously, they are not happy but it’s not hitting anyone really hard I would say. I think I really got hit the hardest.”
In addition, kpii explained that the team's ability to stick to the basics was lacking at times and that they also had difficulty executing the gameplay in the late game despite performing well mechanically and individually.
According to kpii, most of the problems can be sorted within the team, but it remains to be seen whether the team will have all five players on board for the coming season. Fnatic has a few months to figure out its next steps.
