Vici Gaming splits with Yang, coach rOtk as Chinese shuffle looms

Fariha Bhatti Published 02/09/2020

The Great Chinese shuffle might as well be underway as Vici Gaming has announced that offlaner Zhou “Yang” Haiyang and coach Bai “rOtK” Fanhave chosen to leave the team’s Dota 2 roster after the expiration of their contracts.

Both men have left monumental legacies in Vici Gaming. rOtK captained the Vici Gaming roster that finished as the runners-up of The International 2014, playing for the team on two different occasions before transitioning into a coaching role. With a career spanning back to the early days of Dota 2, he is considered a true legend of the Chinese scene, competing for the likes of Team DK, LGD, and EHOME apart from Vici.

Yang spent the whole of his professional career with the organization since emerging as a pro in 2015, first playing with Vici Gaming Potential and Reborn before moving to the main roster. He also had a year-long stint in VGJ.Thunder, a joint venture between Vici Gaming and professional basketball player Jeremy Lin.

Both Yang and rOtK became key parts of the dominant Chinese squad that dominated the 2018-19 Dota Pro Circuit, winning two Majors and finishing in the top six at TI9.

Rumors suggests that both Yang and rOtK are headed for a new superteam under the Four Angry Men banner, which currently only competes in PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds. Four Angry Men is said to be potentially targeting another Vici Gaming player, carry Zhang “Eurus” Chengjun, PSG.LGD’s stars Somnus and Xu “fy” Linsen, as well as Aster’s captain Pan “Fade” Yi.

Reports state that Vici Gaming already have a replacement for Yang in the form of former Fnatic carry Nuengnara “23savage” Teeramahanon. 23savage has been teamless since parting ways with Fnatic in late July, and is considered a hot prospect in the current Dota 2 landscape.

After Yang and rOtK’s departure, VG’s current roster is the following:

• Zhang “Eurus” Chengjun
• Zeng “Ori” Jiaoyang
• Xiong “Pyw” Jiahan
• Ding “Dy” Cong

With so many rumors going around in the Chinese scene and a new superteam in the making, the Chinese Dota 2 scene could look very different in the coming weeks.

Fariha Bhatti

About Fariha Bhatti

Fariha Bhatti is a long-time gaming writer who loves competitive FPS games and slots with particularly fun themes. She got her start playing classic games developed by SNK, from legendary fighting game series The King of Fighters to challenging platform franchise Metal Slug. She now spends most of her time playing Valorant and Counter-Strike 2 while working her way through new slot releases to find her next favorite. Fariha has been published at PCGamesN, TalkEsport and ONE Esports.

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