Yatoro Expresses Disappointment With Chinese Teams' Absence at Stockholm Major

Team Spirit secured a spot in the ESL One Stockholm Major 2022 through the lower bracket of the Eastern Europe Dota Pro Circuit (DPC) 2021-22 Tour 2 Playoffs despite a rocky start to the season. Team Spirit's carry player, Illya "Yatoro" Mulyarchuk, came for the post-match winner's interview after qualifying and expressed disappointment with the fact that no Chinese teams will be competing at the Major. As Yatoro described the Chinese teams he was eager to play against, he added that he was not intrigued by any other teams from other regions.

It became known recently that Chinese teams will not be able to travel for the Stockholm Major, probably due to severe lockdown restrictions in Shanghai.

Yatoro feels there are no interesting teams at the Stockholm Major since Chinese squads aren't participating

In the series that secured Team Spirit the slot at the Major, the second game was won in just 16 minutes. Yatoro joked in the post-match interview that he wanted to end the game in 10 minutes, he was then asked to fulfill this wish at the Major. Although Yatoro felt fine about the suggestion, it reminded him of the fact that Chinese teams will not be attending the Major in Stockholm.

Yatoro, who had been looking forward to playing against PSG.LGD, Team Aster, and Xtreme Gaming's carry player Lou "lou" Zhen, expressed disappointment over their inability to travel for the Major and expressed the hope that they would be present at the next Major.

“On Major, it (winning the game in 10 minutes) will be fine but now, it’s so sad that (there will be) no China teams. I really want to play against PSG or Aster or against lou - he’s Xtreme Gaming carry. He’s really interesting for me. So, it is sad but I think they will be on Major number three and I think it will be an interesting Major.”

Yatoro further noted the significance of the Chinese teams' participation when he said that he was not interested in playing against any other team from other parts of the world at the Major. “No, no. 0 teams interesting for me if it is not PSG.LGD or Aster or Xtreme Gaming,” he said during the interview.

The Chinese region has consistently produced some of the most successful teams in Dota 2 on the international stage over the years, so Yatoro's interest in Chinese teams is well justified. However, at the Stockholm Major, the region will not have the opportunity to display its prowess and will instead compete in Regional Finals. The four teams that qualified for the Major, PSG.LGD, Team Aster, Xtreme Gaming, and Royal Never Give Up, are likely to participate in these Regional Finals.

The remaining 14 teams from the remaining five regions will be expected to show their skill and mental fortitude at the Stockholm Major. The reigning TI champions, Team Spirit, have been in tremendous form over the last six months and will be among the teams to watch. However, Yatoro noted that the team wasn't at its peak yet and hoped to do so during the Major.

“To be honest, we are on 10% of our real form right now so I think we can play 10 times better than what we are playing right now, so I hope we will show the best game of Dota at the Major.”

The Stockholm Major will begin on 12th May and run until 22nd May. It will feature $500K USD as the prize pool and 3,530 DPC points will also be at stake in this event