Cover-Credits:
At DreamLeague Season 19, a young Iranian Dota 2 player named Kasra "Mikey" Mesbah made a name for himself by standing in for Shopify Rebellion as the team’s mid laner, after Abed "Abed" Yusop was unable to secure his visa in time. With Mikey's help, Shopify Rebellion managed to make it past the first and second group stage and into the playoffs, ultimately securing a 3rd place finish at the tournament. Team Spirit's carry player Illya "Yatoro" Mulyarchuk praised Mikey's performance and spoke about the young mid-laner’s chances at getting recruited by a top-tier team, saying that he has a bright future in Dota 2 if he can adapt to meta changes and expand his hero pool.
Yatoro's Thoughts on Mikey's Future
As reported first by escorenews, Yatoro spoke highly of Mikey's potential in the Dota 2 scene, citing his skills as a high-MMR pub player and as a skilled and thoughtful player. However, he also noted that it may be difficult for Mikey to secure a spot on a top-tier team due to his limited hero pool and the competition for spots on those teams. The carry player for Team Spirit stated how the young Iranian player has a nice chance of getting into a decent team and talked about how he played as a stand in for Entity in the past.
“He definitely has a future. He's a typical high-MMR pub player. At some point, he was in meta. Now, I'm curious how he will develop because a lot of his heroes aren't that good. In general, he has a nice chance of getting on a decent team. Because he is doing well, he is a skilled and thoughtful player.
I remember when he stood in for Entity, he killed Larl three times in a Pango vs Invoker match-up. He is a skilled guy.” Yatoro said.
Yatoro mentions several teams that may be a good fit for Mikey, including Ooredoo Thunders, and also speaks about why no one recruited him after the conclusion of the first Dota Pro Circuit (DPC) tour. According to The International 10 Champion, there was nowhere to go after the first DPC tour, saying that he is more likely to go to a European (EU) team rather than a CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) team. He stated that Liquid will not be making any roster changes, Tundra’s midlaner Leon "Nine" Kirilin will also keep his spot and Gaimin Gladiators just picked Quinn “Quinn” Callahan and are doing well.
“There's nowhere to go, in general. Considering he is Iranian and will more likely go to Europe rather than CIS, he won't get to Liquid, Nine will also keep his place, Gladiators (Gaimin Gladiators) just picked Quinn, and they are doing good. OG? To change bzm, an 18-year-old for the same kind of guy who is only 17? Well, that's just plain stupid. Ooredoo Thunders, maybe, that kind of team might recruit him. It's hard to get on a roster that will guarantee to destroy opponents. He can end up in Division 1 but on a low-profile team.” he added to his initial response.
Mikey's performance at DreamLeague Season 19 was certainly impressive, and it seems that he has caught the attention of some prominent players in the scene. Yatoro's comments suggest that Mikey has the potential to become a valuable addition to any team, and with more experience and a broader hero pool, he could go on to achieve great things in the world of Dota 2. It will be interesting to see how Mikey develops and which team he ends up joining in the future.
