Dota 2: Hard Supports At The International 12 And Their Signature Heroes #2

These are some of the hard support players at The International 12 that you will hear a lot about because they’re on another level.

Everyone knows that being a hard support is one of the most ungrateful roles in Dota 2 when it comes down to PUBs. However, this is not the case when talking about professional games because every team needs a good hard support player, which is why this article will be devoted to those who will play at TI.

A lot of people want to know more about the best hard support players at The International 12 because this tournament will include the best of the best. Although we are still not aware of all teams that will be at the event, there is enough information to share a few words about the leading hard supports. Keep in mind we already have a part 1 article, so check some of the players we’ve covered. Once ready, here are a few other names you need to be aware of.

Zhang “y`” Yiping – PSG.LGD

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Despite the fact that y is just 25 years old, the position 5 support is one of the most experienced players at The International 12. He played for a few teams during his career, which started in 2014. Needless to say, everyone remembers him for his time with Wings Gaming when the team won The International a few years ago. Wings Gaming became still the last Chinese squad to win this tournament.

Today, y is a part of PSG.LGD. He became a part of the newly formed squad in late 2020 and has been a key part of it since. Besides being one of the best hard support players at The International 12, this player is also the squad’s captain.

He can play with pretty much any hero, depending on the patch. However, there are a couple of names he’s known for, such as:

Tal “Fly” Aizik –  Shopify Rebellion

There are only a few Dota 2 top-tier hard support players who are as famous in the professional scene as Fly. Even though he’s one of the oldest players at TI 12, this doesn’t stop him from being one of the best hard supports at The International 12. Fly’s been a part of EG’s previous roster (now called Shopify Rebellion) for some time now and has proven himself as one of the most experienced and talented captains in the world.

What’s very interesting about Fly is that he’s been a part of the professional scene since 2012. Even though he hasn’t won TI yet, he was close a few times, which is probably not a surprise, considering how good he is.

We can write a separate article dedicated only to Fly because he is on another level when you compare him to other supports. Together with n0tail, these two were among the best for years. In fact, they became the first players to win 4 events by Valve. Fly is also one of the people behind OG because he found the team with him. Needless to say, Fly spent a few years with the club before moving to EG. This move actually allowed n0tail to win TI 2 times in a row because the latter formed a new team that ripped through everything.

Fly can use all sorts of heroes and has proven he can adapt to the meta really well. However, there are a few names he’s more comfortable with, and they include the following:

Chan “Oli” Chon Kien – Talon Esports

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One of the players that some people may not have heard of is called Oli and he’s one of the best hard supports at The International 12. Oli is from Malaysia, and he’s a player from Malaysia who became a professional in 2017. Even though that’s more than 6 years ago, he’s only been a part of 3 big teams –  Geek Fam, Invictus Gaming, and Talon Esports.

Most of you probably know him for his time with Invictus Gaming because he played for the Chinese powerhouse for more than 4 years. Even though iG had some pretty good results, the team wasn’t able to do much internationally. Consequently, Oli decided to change his team for Talon Esports, and he’s been performing really well so far.

The position 5 support can be seen playing with a variety of heroes. However, most people know him for the likes of the following:

Steven “StingeR” Vargas – beastcoast

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South America has a few good South American supports, and StringeR is no doubt one of them. He is one of those players who is his team’s captain, and he can come up with unique ideas. Needless to say, many people consider him one of the best hard supports at The International 12.

StringeR began playing professionally in 2015 and changed a lot of teams during his career. Even though he hasn’t been a part of Thunder Awaken, StingeR played for pretty much every other big name, including beastcoast. This is his current squad, and he’s been a part of it since 2020.

StingeR is famous for playing with a few specific heroes and the fact that he’s much better with them than others. Here are just a few examples:

Yaroslav “Miposhka” Naidenov – Team Spirit

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When talking about TI winning hard support players, we need to address Miposhka, one of the biggest names in the CIS Dota 2 scene. The 25-year-old player is Team Spirit’s captain and one of the few players who has won more than $5.2M during his career.

Miposhka is playing since 2015 and had a key role in many teams, including HellRaisers, Team Empire, PRIES, and more. However, he became one of the best in the world when he became a part of Yellow Submarine, which was acquired by Team Spirit. 

Miposhka is good with a wide range of heroes, including: