While it is true that Dota 2 is a team game, there are aspects of the game that allow players to stand out from the rest of the rotation. One of these is the laning phase where players, in one way or another, can find a way to outperform opponents and excel in the early stages of the match.
In the podcast “Fly and the Other Guy,” Shopify Rebellion’s captain Tal “Fly” Aizik talked about the top five hardest Dota 2 laners he has ever fought with. It is worth noting that this is his personal opinion, based solely on his experience being a pro for years. So, if you think he ranked one player higher than the other or vice versa, then just know that it is not an official list whatsoever.
Fly ranks Daryl “iceiceice” Koh fifth on the list. Iceiceice and Fly were former teammates back in Evil Geniuses. For him, iceiceice is an “annoying” opponent in the offlane. “He is an annoying person to lane against,” Fly said.
Fly said that iceiceice is really good at denying creeps and using summons to block neutral creeps in Dota 2 . He also added that the offlaner is capable of pulling waves for a very long time, a skill he excels the most when compared to other offlaners in the game.
The fourth Dota 2 player on Fly’s list is Ammar “ATF” Al-Assaf, the offlane-turned-carry player from OG. Ever since his debut in OG, ATF has become a popular Dota 2 player, and according to Fly, he is lethal due to his unmatched patience. Despite getting harassed or hit, ATF seems very calm and does not get easily baited. More importantly, ATF knows when to play for timing. Simply put, he knows when to get aggressive and when to backout: a true display of patience.
Next on his list, the third spot is courtesy of the offlane duo from Neta “33” Shapira and Martin “Saksa” Sazdov, champions of The International 11 from Tundra Esports. According to Fly, the duo is the “game plan team.” They do not just act out as “they always have some idea of how they are gonna play the lane.” Well, this is actually true and is somehow displayed during their TI 11 run, where 33 is known for his unorthodox methods with his heroes, while Saksa is there to make sure they are turned into reality. Their combos often punish those who make mistakes in lanes.
The International 10 champions Magomed "Collapse" Khalilov and Miroslaw "Mira" Kolpakov have earned the second place on Fly's list. The Shopify Rebellion captain said that whenever he and Artour "Arteezy" Babaev face these two, they get into trouble most of the time. They have the “killer instinct” which made “the most punishing offline by far” on his list.
Now, as for the number one spot, it is none other than Syed “SumaiL” Hassan from Nigma Galaxy. Although Fly didn’t face SumaiL that much in the lane, he still placed him on top of the list after playing in a ranked game with him four years ago.
He refers to a pub game they played before and in that match, he had to go mid and lane against SumaiL. “I got absolutely massacred,” Fly exclaims. Well, it is not really a surprise considering the former TI Champion was dubbed “The King of Mid.”
SumaiL is really an exceptional midlaner. Most of his Dota 2 plays (some of them can be seen in the video below) show him as a patient player with killer instincts. He does not rattle even when under pressure and he knows exactly when to start rotating. Almost everyone in the community will agree that even to this day, SumaiL still lives to his moniker, The King of Mid.
