It’s been a hectic few days for Shopify Rebellion, especially after Jonáš “SabeRLight-” Volek decided to step away, with the surprise move leaving SR without an offlaner as The International 2024 qualifiers appear on the horizon.
The rapid-fire search for a replacement only lasted two days, though, as the reshuffling team struck gold with Ivan “MinD_ContRoL” Ivanov. MinD_ContRoL (“MC”) has been on the sidelines for a while after his move to Tundra Esports, which didn’t pan out at the beginning of the Dota 2 season. The two didn’t part on good terms, and MC wasn’t reinstated into the roster. He even as far as apologizing to Tundra after the sudden break-up.
Considering MC was putting out solid performances before Tundra and during his brief stint, many were curious whether he’d find another team during the 2024 season, and the answer has turned up today: Yes, he has.
As Valve dropped surprise TI13 invites alongside the qualifier schedule, MC signed up for the only region with just one slot. While the internal competition in NA is relatively slim, upsets can always happen, so SR is far from out of the woods yet.
While this looks like a solid pickup for SR, there’s also a chance chemistry problems could follow both the Dota 2 team and MC. SabeRLight- left the team because he thought his ideas were “met with backlash,” indicating his vision for the way the game should be played must have clashed with the team and “key members”—this is where the main problem lies with this new roster move. MC left Tundra due to a similar reason after Pure claimed his captain role and the team also brought in a coach against MC’s wishes.
Both MC and SabeRLight- are known for being more influential in the offlane role, a position that requires a high level of game sense and decision-making. Unless MC adapts to a lesser role, SR might need to address chemistry and consider incorporating ideas from the offlane, potentially leading to a shift in strategy.
Shopify will go into action with MC on May 31 in Riyadh qualifiers.
