TNC Predator Parts Ways With Its Captain March

Completely unshaken by what happened recently to Fnatic, TNC Predator has decided to remove its captain March from the roster after just one year of activity. In some ways, this move is justified. It’s enough to look at TNC’s results in 2019 and then check their results for 2020 to get an idea of how much they have dropped in skill this year. But even under these conditions, the change is risky and based on a potentially wrong analysis.

What March Accomplished

Apart from being one of the few South Koreans who play Dota, March’s credibility comes from what he achieved in his career. For instance, he finished 7^th – 8^th at The International 2015 with MVP Phoenix. Then, in 2019, he won two important tournaments with TNC Predator: ESL One Hamburg 2019 and the MDL Chengdu Major. And keep in mind, this happened back when the Dota 2 professional scene was full of exceptional teams. Although it is true that many of them decided to skip this tournament, TNC still had to be stronger than the likes of Vici Gaming and Evil Geniuses. And that’s impossible if you don’t have a good captain.

It’s hard to say what happened these spectacular results and why the team dropped so much not just globally, but also regionally. For example, at the recent BTS Pro Series Season 3: Southeast Asia, TNC finished 5^th – 6^th. This was undoubtedly a failure. But at the same time, the team won the title at ESL One Thailand 2020: Asia. And that tournament took place less than a month ago.

My guess is that these huge swings occurred simply because of a lack of live tournaments. After winning ESL One Thailand 2020, the whole team probably felt like taking a break and didn’t train as hard as before. Compared to what the players are used to (large prize pools, live action etc.), this whole series of purely online events with small prize pools feels insignificant. So it’s hard to say that March lost his edge and had to be replaced. Rather, it’s the climate in which the competition takes place that made him less competitive.

Risks and Potential Replacements

We all saw what happened to Fnatic recently. The organization parted ways with its captain, Jabz, who had been playing there for 2 years. The move turned out to be a complete disaster. And it’s not yet clear how long it will take until Fnatic becomes a regional force again. But who knows? Maybe they’ve made March a great offer. Could that be the reason why he left TNC?

In any case, now that he’s gone, TNC has to replace him. The number one option seems to be Jabz. There are of course others as well, but I think we need to think regionally here. Because the ongoing pandemic will most likely deter strong foreigners to leave their region at this time and move to Southeast Asia.

 

Photo credit: Valve