OG has continued its incredible form from the Dota Pro Circuit (DPC) 2021-22 events, emerging as the top seed in Group A at the Riyadh Masters. While everything has been going well for the team, its captain, Mikhail "Misha" Agatov, stated at a recent post-match winner's interview at the Riyadh Masters that the squad was actually not in its best shape before the event. He noted that OG lost the majority of its scrims right before the official games at the Riyadh Masters, which is when they requested the assistance of OG’s former player Sébastien "Ceb" Debs. Misha added that Ceb, via his legendary speeches and advice, was able to pull OG up, which went on to play a significant role in the squad performing remarkably in the group stage.
Misha credits Ceb's assistance for OG's success in the Riyadh Masters 2022 group stage
OG earned the top seed in Group A with a 2-0 win against TSM in the team's last series of the Riyadh Masters 2022 group stage on 22nd July. Following the resounding victory, captain Misha gave some interesting insight into how Ceb, despite not playing for OG anymore, proved once again to be a valuable member of the organization.
According to Misha, OG played four scrims before its first series at Riyadh Masters 2022 and lost three, which put them in a "horrible shape." They then invited Ceb, who is present at the event as a Dota 2 analyst, and he helped them find their way, come together, and play the typical OG Dota 2.
“Ceb magic is also involved a bit. Because when I arrived, I slept only 2-3 hours before going into scrims. Before officials, we played four scrims and lost three out of four, and were in horrible shape. We felt like we needed Ceb buff so we asked him to come, talk with us, and he inspired us once again and helped us to find our way. I think this is all thanks to him because he helped us to like - gather and play real Dota. Aggressive Dota, real OG Dota so thanks to him.”
Misha was unable to attend the ESL One Stockholm Major 2022 due to visa concerns, thus Ceb, who is an offlaner, had to fill in as the position five player. Even with a stand-in, OG’s performances were a sight to behold at the Major as they went on to win the title. Throughout the event, Ceb was able to create some game-changing moments on heroes like Monkey King and Windranger. In addition, Johan "N0tail" Sundstein served as the coach at the Major since Evgenii "Chuvash" Makarov was unable to attend.
Before the Riyadh Masters, Misha stated that Ceb and N0tail had requested if they should accompany them for assistance, but Misha responded that they were now ready to attend their first event as a team with all the learnings.
“I mean OG family is always trying to reach out to us and this tournament actually, Ceb and N0tail asked if we need their help and they said that we can come with you, we can help you with full power but we said that we are pretty ready to go into our own journey in this tournament as a team. Because we learned all the lessons and use all of them by ourselves and this is gonna be our first solo tournament as a team, like bonding and stuff. I think we are ready. It’s gonna be fun, without them even.”
As the top seed in the group round, OG has advanced directly to the semifinals of the Riyadh Masters 2022. It will take on the winner of PSG.LGD vs Nigma Galaxy on 24th July, with a grand final berth on the line. The Riyadh Masters has a total prize pool of $4 million USD.
