#GamingBytes: All about OG, the new DOTA 2 champions
DOTA 2's The International concluded, recently, and like all sports, the final was a great story. The underdog team of 2018, OG faced PSG.LGD, the favorites. The game stretched for 5 matches with OG beating LGD 3-2. People have already dubbed it as an underdog victory. The OG members are now some of the highest-paid players in the world. Here's more about the team.
The OG brilliance
OG is the first team to win four Valve sponsored DOTA Major Championships. It is also the only squad that has defended a title. With its TI 2018 victory, it became the first and only team that has won 4 Majors and The International.
The origin story
OG started as (monkey)Business. The founders 'Fly' and 'N0tail' were former members of rivals, Team Secret. Founded in 2015, the other core team members included 'Miracle-', 'Cr1t-' and 'MoonMeander'. It had a terrific run at the Frankfurt Major where it beat Team Secret in the finals. Despite winning an invitation to TI 2016, it ended in 9-12th spot. It was a major upset.
Reshuffling the deck
Following TI 2016, MoonMeander, Cr1t- and Miracle- left OG. They were replaced by JerAx of Team Liquid, s4 of Alliance and ana, a substitute in Invictus Gaming. Winning the Autumn Major, Boston, in 2016, OG became the first team to defend a Major Title in the history of DOTA 2. It also won the Kiev Winter Major. However, LGD eliminated it in TI 2017.
Third time is a charm
OG's chances in 2018 were great till 'ana' left the team. He was replaced by Resolut1on. It suffered severe blows as Resolut1on left and coach 7ckingMad had to step in. The roster change meant OG had to play the open qualifiers. The second blow came when s4 and founding member Fly left for Evil Geniuses. Ana's return and signing of newcomer Topson saved OG.
Nothing sweeter than karmic justice
OG was an underdog and Topson had never played at this level. However, fate spoke and OG beat Evil Geniuses, where two of their members had defected. Its nail-biting final against LGD marked the second time in TI history that had a five-match game. OG won the first, lost two consecutively and made a miraculous comeback finally to win the 'Aegis of Champions'.
Meet the OG team
The current team roster includes- Anathan Pham or 'ana', Topias Taavitsainen or 'Topson', Sebastien Debs, Jesse Vainikka known as 'JerAx' and founding member and captain, Johan or 'N0tail'.
