"There are a lot of really strong mid-heroes right now": Shopify Rebellion's Abed on the latest patch, current Dota 2 meta, and more

While Shopify Rebellion is one of the strongest Dota 2 teams in North America, they had a mixed bag of results this Dota Pro Circuit (DPC) season. With both ups and downs, the community has high expectations from the outfit and its players at the upcoming event, The International (TI). It remains to be seen if they can cement their potential or let it go awry.

Shopify Rebellion's Abed sat down with Sportskeeda Esports before DreamLeague Season 21, where he talked about the team's DPC fortunes, the current Dota 2 format, the strongest teams, and more.

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Abed discusses Shopify Rebellion's fortunes in the current Dota 2 season and the future at TI

Q: Shopify Rebellion has enjoyed a mixed bag of results this Dota 2 Pro Circuit. What do you think of how the season went for the team and you?

Abed: The season definitely did not go as expected. Obviously, we wanted better results, and we know we could have done better than we did. But our main goal right now is to do our best at TI.

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Q: With Dota 2 Riyadh Masters 2023 not going in your favor, what do you think went wrong in the tournament?

Abed: I think we did not get to play together as a team. That’s pretty much it. We were lacking some stability in our mid-game.

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Q: With the break in August, did you manage to get some time off, or were you all busy practicing?

Abed: We were all practicing from our homes. We just got together here yesterday in Germany to prepare for DreamLeague and the upcoming TI as well.

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Q: Patch 7.34’s larger map and new mechanics have, for some, rejuvenated the entire Dota 2 experience. What do you think about the changes?

Abed: I think the patch is very interesting. There are a lot of really strong mid-heroes right now, like Earth Spirit and Invoker.

They are the heroes that people did not really play in the last patch, so I am very excited about this one. Some heroes are really strong, and the mid-place right now is also very nice to play, and I enjoy it a lot.

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Q: Who do you feel is the most broken hero in the current Dota 2 meta? What do you feel about Invoker right now with the recent changes?

Abed: Most broken hero - let me think about it for a bit. I am going to be a little biased, but yesterday, I played a few games, and in every game I played, Phantom Assassin won. I am just going to say Phantom Assassin.

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Q: With DreamLeague being the final tournament before The International, will Shopify Rebellion be testing their strats out or save them for later?

Abed: We will definitely do our best. It also is my first DreamLeague since I did not get to play the previous one, so I am excited about that.

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Q: At this moment, which team do you think is the contender for winning the upcoming DreamLeague? Is there anyone you are excited to face in the tournament?

Abed: I would say Gaimin Gladiators and Team Spirit. I am excited to play against everybody.

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Q: Dota 2 The International is set to arrive in a month’s time. How have you guys been preparing for it? What are your expectations from the tournament?

Abed: I can only speak for myself, but I am definitely expecting to do better than we did in the previous tournament. We will just be doing our best day by day, and we will see how it goes.

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Q: With respect to Valve’s latest news about the DPC format, what do you think regarding the changes?

Abed: I like it personally. I am not a big fan of the current DPC format. So for me, any change would be better.