SumaiL discusses his benching at Evil Geniuses, wants to play

Syed “SumaiL” Hassan is no longer a part of Evil Geniuses’ Dota 2 roster and the entire Dota 2 community is grappling with that fact.

That goes for SumaiL as well. The mid laner discussed what he’s feeling and what the future holds for him in a short statement on Twitter.

“It was a wild ride for almost 5 years on Evil Geniuses. The team I started my career and was planning to end it on,” SumaiL said. “Unfortunately, it was not meant to be. Good luck to EG, and yeah, love you all for mad support. I’m not taking a break or retiring that goes without, doesn’t it?”

Prior to SumaiL’s statement, Evil Geniuses announced that the mid laner had been deactivated from their Dota 2 team. Replacing him in the role is former Fnatic mid Abed Azel “Abed” Yusop. The team is also parting with offlaner Gustav “s4” Magnusson, who is being replaced by former Virtus.pro carry Roman “RAMZES666” Kushnarev.

The news stunned fans of the team.

Despite being attached to an organization that has historically been flush with stars, SumaiL has arguably shined brighter than anyone over recent years. He is regarded by some as the single best mid laner in the world, and helped Evil Geniuses retain elite status throughout the vast majority of his tenure. The team has qualified for The International every year since his addition, most notably winning TI5 but also placing third at TI6 and TI8.

He departs following a top-six finish at The International 2019.

What team will SumaiL play for after Evil Geniuses?

The biggest note from SumaiL’s statement is that he is not done playing professional Dota 2, or even taking a break. He is presumably looking to get back in action as soon as possible.

But where will he end up?

Worth noting is that SumaiL has been placed onto Evil Geniuses’ bench, not released from the team. This means that he is still under contract with the organization, and there could be some manner of buyout clause in place that would prevent him from freely leaving.

That fact, alongside his pure technical skill and popularity, likely means he will land with a prominent esports organization. There is no shortage of those in Dota 2 right now.

Team Liquid is looking for a way back into the game after splitting with its longtime roster and signing SumaiL would send a powerful message that they still want to be a Dota 2 powerhouse. Complexity Gaming is in a similar position after dropping their own Dota 2 roster, and team CEO Jason Lake previously hinted that the organization is looking to make the jump to bona fide tier-one status after long standing as something of a second-tier team.

And of course, there is always the possibility of a larger organization from outside the game showing up. If Immortals or Cloud9 wanted to return to Dota 2, there won’t be a splashier way to do so than by signing SumaiL