Natus Vincere Withdraws from Upcoming Major Because of Travel Issues

One of the biggest names in Dota 2 will be missing from the One Esports Singapore Major, with Natus Vincere having announced that they have pulled out of the event due to concerns surrounding both Covid-19 and travel. The news comes shortly after beastcoast confirmed that they would also not be competing in the tournament.

Natus Vincere were the no.2 seed for the event, however with one of its players having tested positive for coronavirus, as well as problems arising over a potential stand-in, the team has made the decision to withdraw completely. Team Captain Andrii “ALWAYSWANNAFLY” Bondarenko and Bogdan “Iceberg” Vasilenko both tested positive, which promted Na’Vi to state that they would be using stand-ins for the Major.

Why it Was a Period of Uncertainty for Na’Vi

Ex-Virtus.Pro and Evil Geniuses player Roman “RAMZES666” Kushnarev and coach Andrey “Mag” Chipenko had been penciled in to compete, however this plan has now been scratched. Mag became the latest in the Natus ranks to test positive, with others having also shown symptoms after attending a training camp. Nikola “LeBronDota” Popovic was another alternative player considered, however his flight was cancelled.

The team were told that they would have to quarantine upon arrival in Singapore, which would have counted them out from competing. Meanwhile, quarantining would have also potentially seen Na’Vi miss out on the start of the new Dota Pro Circuit season. The team will now focus all of its attention on the CIS Regional League.

What Can We Expect to See at the One Esports Singapore Major

All of the confusion means that RAMZES will seemingly be without a team for the Major, despite travelling to Singapore. However, any team requiring a potential stand in will be certain to target the 21-year-old former Evil Geniuses player, who has made a name for himself as one of the best in the world over recent times.

Event organizers Valve, ONE Esports and PGL are expected to make changes to the tournament as a result of the withdrawals we have seen, with the action set to get underway on March 27. The likes of Fnatic, Team Secret, Invictus Gaming and Evil Geniuses are among the seeded teams for the event.