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Boxi on SEA pubs: "I was playing in Southeast Asian hell"
After a strong finish in the group stage, Team Liquid placed second in group B at the Riyadh Masters 2023, with a final score of 9-5. Team Liquid had an incredible performance in the second half of the league, winning six games in a row.
After defeating Talon Esports, Samuel "Boxi" Svahn had an interview with the stage hosts to discuss his team's performance, SEA pubs, and how he stays healthy while being a professional Dota 2 player.
Boxi: "SEA is nice, but everyone is kind of crazy"
Team Liquid was off to a slow start at the Riyadh Masters 2023, going 3-5 in the first two days. This put them at risk of being eliminated before the playoffs. Fortunately, the squad rallied in time to finish strong and secure a spot in the upper bracket.
Boxi credits their success to a crucial team discussion, "I think in the group stage, we played pretty bad. And maybe picked heroes and drafts we weren't fully comfortable with. And now I feel we have figured it out better, once we realized "we might lose, we might get knocked out" But it's been a lot better since we had a big team talk of what's gonna happen."
Dota 2 teams improve their chemistry through scrims with other professional teams while honing their mechanical skills in pubs. When asked how the pubs in Saudi Arabia compare to other regions, Boxi said that it's very familiar to what he is used to, but with more lag.
"So here, as far as I know, we're just playing European pubs with 90 ping, so I'm sorry to say but this is not my favorite region to play pubs in, 'cause I'm lagging but otherwise it's all good."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgGg_wEZ23c
Team Liquid has traveled extensively this year, competing in the Lima Major, Bali Major, as well as in Western Europe. Boxi enjoyed his time in South America but found Southeast Asia pubs to be a little lackluster, something other pros agree with.
"I think South America was kind of fun, everyone has different ideas. I meant Southeast Asia is nice, but everyone is kind of crazy there. And I feel the quality of the games were a bit lower, I didn't get any pro players in my games, I was just playing in Southeast Asian hell or something."
Boxi: "Staying healthy and exercising is good for your dota gameplay"
As the world of esports continues to grow, more light is shed on the physical, emotional, and mental toll professional players go through in order to be the best. The cost of playing competitively is enormous, and esports organizations recognize that.
More teams than ever are employing physical and mental health experts to help players cope with the unbelievable stress that comes with competing in million-dollar teams. Tundra Esports credits psychologist Dan Abrahams for their success at TI11, considering him an integral part of their journey to life the Aegis.
Team Liquid places a big emphasis on their players' health, with coach William "Blitz" Lee pushing his players to go to the gym as often as possible, though not always with success.
"A few years ago, when William first joined Liquid, he was like "I'm gonna get these guys to the gym and we're gonna work out and everyone is going to be healthy" and after a few years of him trying to get us to go gym, he's probably gonna stop asking."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNU5tm_BS9Y
Due to health issues, Boxi is unable to commit to a gym full-time. However, that has not stopped him from doing what he can to maintain his health.
"For me personally, I still try and stay a little bit active, I've had problems with my stomach, so I can't do much heavy lifting or exercise, so I put all the blame on that. Staying healthy and exercising is good for your dota gameplay, there's no excuse, But I think the gym is not my current way of doing it."
Team Liquid continues their journey in the Riyadh Masters on July 25th, going up against long-time rivals Gaimin Gladiators as their first opponent of the upper bracket. Dota 2 fans can catch all the action live on Twitch.
READ MORE: Arteezy on the recent meta shifts: "I really hate this Tormentor thing"
Image Source provided by: Team Liquid
