Best Dota 2 Players for the Carry Role
Over the past decade of everything Dota 2, the hottest debate among players have always been simply about, “Who is the best carry player in Dota 2?”
Unlike other esports, such as CS:GO, Dota does not have an official top 10 or top 20 to celebrate the best Dota 2 players in the world. Nevertheless, people still wonder who the best player in Dota 2 is and want to know what to expect in a tournament.
Much like in football, basketball or any other team sport, Dota 2 relies heavily not just on a good strategy, but also on exceptional individuals who bring their unique skillset to the table. With that in mind, here’s a list of the best Dota 2 players for the carry role. This top was made in light of the results of early 2020.
Zai from Team Secret
Starting off the list, it’s Ludwig “zai” Wåhlberg, from Team Secret. Unlike most rival teams, Team Secret does not always display brute strength through their gameplay. Instead, it’s the incredible versatility of its players to fit any role.
Ludwig “zai” Wåhlberg
Although zai is officially Team Secret’s offlaner, he often swaps role with his ally support player, Yapzor. The wow factor, coupled with Puppey’s unconventional drafts, create the perfect mind game to fool even the strongest of opponents. Indisputably, zai deserves the title as Dota 2’s Jack of all trades.
Furthermore, their recent first-place finishes speak for itself. After the conclusion of the BEYOND EPIC tournament, Team Secret bagged 6 championship titles in their pocket, making them the top choice in Dota 2 betting.
ana from OG
The Australian prodigy, Anathan “ana” Pham is an absolute legend at this point. He’s also always absent from the Esports scene, simply because OG prefers a nonchalant approach to how they compete at the professional level.
Both in 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 seasons they were almost non-existent until The International. Yet, when it was time for the biggest event of the year, they absolutely demolished everyone, period.
© Steve Andreou
With ana as their carry, OG became the first team in the history of Dota to win two consecutive TIs. Of course, for achievements of such calibre, the credit goes to the whole team. However, if we look at how mediocre OG was without ana and what they achieved after his return, it’s clear as daylight that his contribution was vital to OG’s accomplishments.
Another argument in favour of this statement is his game-winning clutch decisions. From selling the right item at a critical time to elegantly playing unconventional hero like IO in the carry role, ana’s performance still leaves fans and pro players in awe.
Therefore, in spite of not being in the spotlight all year long, ana is still a worthy candidate on this shortlist of the best Dota 2 players of 2020.
Miracle- from Nigma
Despite having a rough start with his team in the 2019–2020 season, Amer “Miracle-” Al-Barkawi was instrumental in Liquid’s success in 2019. His former team finished 2nd in two Dota Pro Circuit Majors (MDL Disneyland Paris Major and EPICENTER Major), 1st at MDL Macau 2019 and 2nd at The International 2019.
Similar to ana’s case, Miracle- cannot possibly get all the credit for these results. Especially when his captain is KuroKy (3 time TI finalist), and all of his other teammates are world-class players.
© Team Nigma
Howbeit, even among Dota 2 top carry players, his skills in the carry role have been phenomenal before he started playing professionally. Whether it’s Anti-Mage, Invoker or Juggernaut, Miracle- plays his role with godlike precision and was formerly proclaimed as a Dota 2 “pubstar”.
From his farming patterns to his decision-making during team fights, everything is perfect. Thus, the more reasons to include him on this top 5 list of the best Dota 2 players in the world. In fact, he was selected to play in multiple 1v1 esports tournaments, for instance, at the Dota 2 Asian Championship 2017, where he won first runner-up.
On a side note, Miracle- was the first player in the history of the game to surpass the 9000 MMR barrier. And to think that this happened on May 11th, 2016. These days, even the 10K MMR Club is getting crowdy.
Arteezy from Evil Geniuses
Representing the NA Dota scene, Artour “Arteezy” Babaev might just be NA’s best carry to date. While Arteezy may not be the flashiest player around, he makes up for it by playing consistently as Evil Geniuses’ position 1 carry.
Artour Babaev
That said, he certainly can flex his skills when the situation calls for it. A recent play at the BTS Pro Series Season 2: Americas, showcased Arteezy’s consecutive barrage of skills and items to wipe out the opponent’s entire squad. Since 2014 he has not missed a single TI and has played in almost every Major or relevant Dota 2 competition. Artour is truly a veteran of the scene, but what makes him stand out is his consistency in performance throughout all these years.
Matumbaman from Team Secret
Frankly, the list of “Dota 2 best carry player 2020” would not be complete without featuring Lasse Aukusti “MATUMBAMAN” Urpalainen himself. Ever since his debut in Team Secret, Matumbaman has had more success than his time in Team Liquid. Of course, with the exception of being immortalized as the International 2017 Champions.
Lasse “MATUMBAMAN” Urpalainen
Nonetheless, perhaps the most valuable achievement was regaining his self-esteem as the best Dota 2 carry player. It was during mid-2019, just months before the International 2019, Team Liquid announced that MATUMBAMAN is leaving the team. While the Dota 2 community was baffled by the news, nobody expected MATUMBAMAN of all players, to get kicked from Team Liquid.
Fast forward to post-TI9 roster shuffle, Puppey had his eyes on Matumbaman and believed in his potential. With Team Secret’s victory in recent leagues, it seems like Puppey made the right decision all along.
Other Worthy Candidates
Unfortunately, it pains us to only have 5 Dota 2 best carry player here, but the following players might just catch up in the upcoming list:
No[o]ne from Virtus.pro
Also a member of the 10K MMR Club, Vladimir “No[o]ne” Minenko is one of the remaining players from Virtus.pro’s TI9 roster. Although VP is not in its best shape, let’s not forget the CIS squad that was once called the Major Kings.
23savage from Fnatic
The Thai player, Nuengnara “23savage” Teeramahanon, might just be Dota 2’s rising star. At a mere age of 18-years-old, the young prodigy has only begun his professional career this year. Yet, Fnatic has never looked so promising since their fiasco at the International 2019.
Maybe from PSG.LGD
Often depicted as the most competitive region, the Chinese pro scene has much to thank veteran player, Lu “Maybe” Yao, for winning runner-up spots at two Internationals. Although it seems like Maybe and PSG.LGD might need to tweak some improvements, Chinese fans still hold the team in high regard nonetheless.
After all, it’s the end goal that matters. And those are The Internationals.
Read also: What country has the best gamers?
