Winning the TI is the pinnacle a Dota2 pro player wishes to achieve in his/her career. Even participating in The International (TI) is still a dream for many pro Dota 2 players. So, as you get winning the TI once is considered as a great achievement, period. Winning two TI’s back to back that too with a prize pool of $30 million dollars sounds even less realistic, right? But that is what is so special about Topias Miikka ‘Topson‘ Taavitsainen and his OG squad.
Topson started his journey at the pro Dota2 scene back in 2018 when he still was a rookie. Topson started his career in Finland’s pubs where he would absolutely smash his opponents. His rise to the pro scene was then gradual before he eventually would lead OG to two TI’ consecutively, the first been in 2018.
Before entering his major competition Topson was considered by many as a skilled pub player with limited skills to last on the professional scene. Topson’s journey has been a perfect example of an underdog showing up at the biggest stage possible. It is true that Topson has seen some rough patches in his career. He either takes on the either server looking unbeatable while there are times when he struggles at times when he isn’t supposed to. Dota 2 fans therefore call him ‘Godson’ or ‘Flopson’ based on the performance he puts in.
One would like to play it safe when you are participating in a TI just to make sure you remain competitive in the game. But that isn’t Topson style of play. He did not hold back , instead he went aggressive and would even sacrifice his life sometimes so his other teammates could have more space on the map. So if Topson has a bad game, there is a high chance his team-mates would struggle too.
Comparing Topson’s stas with players like Syed ‘SumaiL’ Hussain reveals the fearless style of play Topson has. SumaiL averages around 297 last hits across his 10 most played heroes while Topson averages around 218.
Dota 2 fans therefore call Topson as ‘Godson’ or ‘Flopson’ based on the performance he puts in.
Topson continued aggression and his unorthodox style of play is intended to create chaos and havoc around the map and let his teammates mop up the victory. The unique thing about the TI winning OG roster is that it was a team effort and not an individual player hard carrying the team in each match.
Topson starts his mind games right off from the draft. You can’t ban or target his heroes simply because he excels in multiple heroes. Even if you manage to ban his heroes you let his teammates loose which in the late game can hurt you the same. All these qualities that Topson possesses doesn’t always set him up for star performances, but his selflessness towards the team do make him an inseparable part of the roster.
I as a Counter Strike fan can relate him to Astralis “Gla1ve” who too plays selfless Counter Strike to set up his teammates for playmaking. Like Gla1ve’s Astralis in Counter Strike, Topson’s OG are the best team till date to ever grace the Dota 2 scene.
Topson recently turned 22, which is a scary prospect for others as peak years are still ahead of the Finnish player. There is even a possibility that he may lead OG to a third straight The International in 2020.
