Bali Major Visa Issues Looms for Tundra Esports

Visa Issues have long been haunting Dota 2 players since the start of the international competition. Now, Tundra Esports, the current International Champions, could be one of the potential victims of this issue. One of Tundra Esports’s players, Neta "33" Shapira, is of Israeli nationality, and the final Major for the 2022-2023 DPC Season will be in Bali, Indonesia. Indonesia has a history of restricting entry to the country, especially Israeli nationality.

Plans and Strats 

The International Champions are prepared to face the challenges, knowing the potential visa issues ahead. When asked how the team is preparing for the Bali Major in a post-match interview, Neta replied that he probably wouldn’t be able to go, even if the team gets qualified for The Bali Major.

He also reveals that the team will practice with a stand-in at the boot camp if they get qualified for The Bali Major. Using a sub will at the Major will cost a 40% penalty on DPC points earned from the particular Major. Unfortunately, Tundra Esports is just the tip of the visa problems. Multiple teams from various regions had also faced visa issues at The Berlin Major and The Lima Major.

Neta "33" Shapira’s Impact 

Neta played a significant role in Tundra Esports’s success at The International 2022. Pioneering the meta known as The Wraith Pact meta, 33 would pick up Wraith Pact along with aura items for his offlane roles, supplementing and giving an advantage to the whole team in team fights.

Wraith Pact reduced the overall outcome damage from the enemy team. When Wraith Pact’s debuffs are combined with the aura items from 33 to make his whole team becomes unkillable. This strategy eventually makes Tundra Esports The International 2022 Champions.

Tundra Performance (thus far)

Despite being The International Champions, Tundra Esports have struggled to put on decent showing when it comes to the Majors. The team was one of the early exits at The Lima Major, securing a disappointing 9-12th place finish. The team placed 4th at DreamLeague Season 19. At The Berlin Major, the team’s performance improved, and they secured a 4th place finish.

Tundra Esports is currently dominating the groups for Summer Tour in Western Europe DPC Division I. After playing four series, the team is yet to lose a single match, and with the record of four wins and 0 losses, the team is the top seed in WEU groups. The team came out on top against OG and Entity, the team that dominated their series against Team Liquid.