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The Berlin Major 2023 has come to an end with Gaimin Gladiators emerging as the back-to-back Major champion after defeating Team Liquid in a 3-1 series. Despite putting up a good fight, Liquid was unable to overcome its rival, much like the previous encounters in the Lima Major 2023 and Dreamleague Season 19 finals. However, the one team that surprised many was 9Pandas, who managed to secure a third-place finish with Vladimir "RodjER" Nikogosian as a stand-in for Alexey "Solo" Berezin, as he couldn't make it to the event. Recently, Dota 2 veteran and Team Secret's captain Clement "Puppey" Ivanov joined Yazied "YapzOr" Jaradat's stream to watch the Berlin Major games and commented on 9Pandas' performance, stating that they would have won the Major if Solo was playing with them.
Puppey Believes Solo's Absence Cost 9Pandas the Berlin Major Victory
During a recent stream with his former teammate YapzOr, Dota 2 veteran and Team Secret's captain Puppey expressed his belief that 9Pandas could have won the ESL One Berlin Major 2023 if the team’s captain, Solo, had not been absent from the event. Puppey remarked that Solo had discovered some important methods for good performance.
“To be honest I think this 9Pandas team would have won this tournament (Berlin Major 2023) with Solo [Seriously? How so?] Yeah I mean there’s no taking away from Rodjer. I think Rodjer’s doing a great job and they’re working on it but I feel like Solo was on to some sh*t, okay? It just felt like that, at least,” Puppey said.
Yapzor then talked about how he recently saw Solo in a pub and what he thought. “I did see him in a pub and he was heavily increased rank and flaming people so that means that he’s confident,” Yapzor replied.
Puppey's remarks on Yapzor's stream shed light on the significant impact of Solo's absence on 9Pandas' performance at the Berlin Major 2023. Puppey believes that Solo's presence would have propelled the team to victory, given his experience and expertise in the game. Nonetheless, 9Pandas managed to secure a third place finish at the event, demonstrating its strength as a team even without its captain. Currently, the team is looking like the strongest contender from Eastern Europe (EEU), and fans will be eagerly waiting to see how it performs in the upcoming DPC EEU 2023 Tour 3 and whether it can qualify for the Bali Major. Overall, 9Pandas' performance has been impressive, and it is a team to watch out for in the Dota 2 competitive scene.
