Dota 2 player Anathan “ana” Pham has officially rejoined OG. This was confirmed by the team on Twitter. This move comes shortly after the group parted with Igor "iLTW" Filatov.
Welcome back² @anadota99 #DreamOG pic.twitter.com/d1DEj227uz
— OG (@OGesports) March 13, 2019
Born in Australia, ana moved to Shanghai from Melbourne in order to pursue his goal of being a professional Dota player. While he had his start with Australian team Mobility Gaming, it would be with Invictus Gaming that his Dota 2 career began. As part of Invictus Gaming, ana helped his team beat Newbee during the National Electronic Arena 2016. Unfortunately, OG failed to qualify for TI6.
During this time, ana parted ways with Invictus Gaming to join OG. OG had entered TI6 strong, but would bow out to TNC. OG, with ana playing, won the Bodton Major 2016 and the Kiev Major 2017. OG's TI7 finish was be a bit better than their TI6. ana took a break from OG, joined Echo International. This wouldn't last long as the Dota 2 pro joined back up with OG again in time for TI8.
To qualify for TI8, OG had to go through the Europe Qualifier. The team beat Wind and Rain with ana's Phantom Lancer, leading to a good showing in TI8. OG won their matches in the upper bracket and got a spot at the Grand Finals. The Grand Finals would go down the stretch with OG beating PSG.LGD on ana's Ember Spirit.
After TI8, ana would again take a break from the team, resulting in OG bringing in Per Anders "Pajkatt" Olsson Lille and then later iLTW. The team struggled, as it was clear both Pajkatt and iLTW had trouble filling in for ana. In both cases, the main issue was team chemistry. After iLTW's departure, there were rumors of ana's possible return, as he was reported to be playing Sébastien "Ceb" Debs. OG fans have reason to celebrate, as that rumor was proven to be true.
— OG (@OGesports) March 13, 2019
For now, OG has a long way to go and it will have to start with the upcoming Paris Major. There is no telling if OG is the team it once was, but there is no question that they are back at the same roster of the TI8 champions, one of the best Dota 2 teams in the world.
