Dota 2: Blacklist Rivalry add 343, Xepher as coaches ahead of TI 2023 qualifiers

The additions of 343 and Xepher are part of Blacklist Rivalry's bid to salvage what has been a disappointing season by qualifying for TI 2023.

·Contributing Editor

Updated 4 August 2023 at 8:59 am·4-min read

Filipino Dota 2 squad Blacklist Rivalry have added 343 and Xepher as their new head coach and assistant coach, respectively, for the upcoming The International 2023 regional qualifiers. (Photo: Blacklist International)

Filipino Dota 2 squad Blacklist Rivalry is gearing up for the upcoming The International (TI) 2023 regional qualifiers with a new coaching staff, featuring Malaysian head coach Adam "343" Shah and Indonesian assistant coach Kenny "Xepher" Deo, the team announced on Thursday (3 August).

343 and Xepher will be replacing Michael "ninjaboogie" Ross Jr., who parted ways with Blacklist Rivalry on 21 July after the team failed to make it out of the Group Stage of the Bali Major.

Prior to joining Blacklist Rivalry, 343 last played with Nigma Galaxy SEA during the 2021-2022 Dota Pro Circuit (DPC) season and had spent much of the 2023 season as a caster and analyst.

Meanwhile, Xepher spent much of the last two seasons with BOOM Esports, leaving on Wednesday (2 August) to transition into an assistant coaching role with Blacklist Rivalry.

Xepher will notably be reuniting with former teammates in the Filipino squad, namely Marc Polo "Raven" Fausto, Karl "Karl" Baldovino, and Carlo "Kuku" Palad. The Indonesian player-turned-assistant coach played with Raven, Karl, and Kuku in Geek Fam and T1.

This additions of 343 and Xepher are part of Blacklist Rivalry's bid to salvage what has been a disappointing season by qualifying for TI 2023.

There was a lot of hype surrounding Blacklist Rivalry to start the 2023 DPC season, as its roster was a veritable Filipino superteam with Raven, Karl, Kuku, Timothy "Tims" Randrup, and Nico "eyyou" Barcelon.

In an interview with Yahoo Esports SEA last December, team captain Tims said Blacklist Rivalry's biggest goal was to "represent the Philippines" in Dota 2's biggest stage at TI. However, the team failed to live up to the lofty expectations set by its star-studded roster.

They had a good start to the Winter Tour but collapsed on the final day of competition, missing out on the Lima Major as a result.

Despite the addition of ninjaboogie as coach back in February, Blacklist Rivalry's struggles continued during the Spring Tour. The team only managed a 3-4 record and thus failed to even sniff a spot at the ESL One Berlin Major 2023.

Such disappointing results prompted the departure of eyyou in April, with the team announcing they will also take "a new direction" away from their original plan to field a full Filipino roster.

That directional shift came in the form of Australian veteran Damien "kpii" Chok, who took over as offlaner while Kuku shifted to the position 5 role previously vacated by eyyou.

With kpii joining the squad, Blacklist Rivalry finally showed signs of life during the Summer Tour regional league and qualified for the Bali Major. However, the team faltered against international competition and bombed out of the final Major of the season in 13th-14th place, which also meant they missed out on a direct invite to TI 2023 and will have to earn their spot in the tournament through the regional qualifiers.

Blacklist Rivalry will be facing some stiff competition in the Southeast Asian regional qualifiers, where they will face the likes of Execration, Bleed Esports, and Team SMG, among others.

The TI 2023 regional qualifiers will be held from 17 to 31 August, with the competition being split into three five-day phases where two regions will compete in each phase.

The qualifiers for North America and China will kick things off from 17 to 21 August, South America and Eastern Europe will follow from 22 to 26 August, while Western Europe and Southeast Asia will close things out from 27 to 31 August.

TI 2023 will be held in Seattle's Climate Pledge Arena from 14 to 29 October and features a revamped format similar to last year's tournament, which was held in Singapore.

Blacklist Rivalry Dota 2 roster:

Marc Polo "Raven" Fausto
Karl "Karl" Baldovino
Damien "kpii" Chok
Timothy "Tims" Randrup
Carlo "Kuku" Palad
Adam "343" Shah (coach)
Kenny "Xepher" Deo (assistant coach)

For more esports news updates, visit https://yhoo.it/YahooEsportsSEA and check out Yahoo Esports Southeast Asia’s Facebook page and Twitter, as well as our Gaming channel on YouTube.

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