The Southeast Asia Dota 2 sensation, Blacklist Rivalry, recently made a surprise announcement ahead of their Last Chance Qualifier for The International 12 next August. They have decided to part ways with their head coach, Michael “ninjaboogie” Ross, after working together for around 6 months.
Through their official Twitter account, the Blacklist team expressed their gratitude to ninjaboogie for his contributions during the Dota 2 Pro Circuit 2023 Tours and for leading the team to its first Major in Bali this month. However, the management stated that they wanted to explore different playstyles and approaches to the game. As a result, they have started making adjustments, starting with the head coach. Their decision to search for a new head coach is believed to be related to ninjaboogie’s performance in the past two tours and during the Bali Major group stage, although no additional explanation was provided.
Reunited with his former TNC mates Carlo “Kuku” Palad and Timothy “Tims” Randrup in Tour 2, he was struggling to keep his team from being relegated. He then made a change by implementing new tactics to deal with the 7.33 patch, which was released before the beginning of Tour 3, and reached out to the veteran Damien “kpii” Chok to replace Nico “eyyou” Barcelon, who left in mid-April. Thanks to his strategies, Blacklist finished third in Tour 3 and qualified for the Bali Major.
Their progress earned them attention when they arrived in Bali, Indonesia, and several pundits considered them one of the surprises for the Bali Major playoffs. However, Blacklist fell short of expectations as they failed to advance beyond the group stage, ending with 1 victory, 4 ties, and 3 defeats.
Following ninjaboogie’s resignation, Blacklist has not yet decided their new head coach. However, considering the approaching schedule, it is possible that they may announce their new head coach by the end of August. There is also a possibility that the team will continue without a head coach, as it did during Tour 1 when Kuku served as the team’s decision maker.
