Cover-Credits:
A number of interesting storylines emerged during Team Spirit's incredible journey from the lower bracket to winning The International 10 (TI10), but one stood out above all others - offlaner Magomed "Collapse" Khalilov’s unbelievable performance on Magnus during some of the most decisive matches of the event. The performance by Collapse at TI10 has continued to evoke nostalgia amongst fans, and now Spirit's midlaner Alexander "TORONTOTOKYO" Khertek has proclaimed Collapse the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of TI10. TORONTOTOKYO mentioned that he knows that much of the fame and attention surrounding the win was directed at Collapse, but that does not bother him since winning is all that matters.
TORONTOTOKYO says Collapse was the MVP of TI10
Since winning the PGL Arlington Major, TORONTOTOKYO has been livestreaming quite a lot on Twitch, playing different games and interacting with viewers. As the topics surrounding TI10 were discussed, TORONTOTOKYO remarked that Collapse had the most impact during the event and it was rather satisfying to see a teammate perform to such an extent.
“No kidding, Collapse was really the MVP of this tournament [The International 10]. It doesn't matter [that all the attention went to him], I think the important thing is that the team wins. When someone plays well on your team, it just feels good.”
Despite having a relatively narrow hero pool at TI10, which mainly consisted of Mars, Tidehunter, and Magnus, Collapse was a force to be reckoned with. During the event, the teams had a difficult time deciding which of the three heroes to let go, and when it was Magnus that was not banned, Collapse picked the hero and just went berserk, especially against OG in game two of the third round of the lower bracket and in game five of the grand final against PSG.LGD. It was Collapse's specialty to catch enemies off guard multiple times with the Horn Toss Into Skewer play.
Although Spirit's victory at TI10 was more of an underdog story since few expected the team to even reach the finals, TORONTOTOKYO said they were confident in at least making the top two. Their start to the event was slow, but they gathered themselves and made a huge comeback.
Now, with two months to go until TI11, TORONTOTOKYO and Spirit will be vying to make it two years in a row. The team has been in great form lately, winning the PGL Arlington Major once again by defeating PSG.LGD in the grand final. But before Spirit begins the TI11 campaign as a favorite, the team will enjoy a long break.
[transcriptions via cybersports.ru, translations via DeepL Translate]
