by BERNAMA / pic credit: Cheng Jin Xiang
KUALA LUMPUR – After having finished second in The International 10 (TI10) recently, Malaysian professional Dota 2 player Cheng Jin Xiang, aims to secure the title next year.
The 20-year-old, who is with the China-based team PSG.LGD, missed the Dota 2 world championship title and the US$18.2 million (about RM75 million) prize money after facing a 2-3 defeat against Team Spirit of Russia in the final in Bucharest, Romania.
Despite missing out on the lion’s share of the record US$40 million (RM166 million) prize pool, the Johor Bahru-born Jin Xiang and his teammates still managed to walk away with US$5.2 million (about RM21.6 million) for the second-place finish.
“TI10 was a very good experience for me, my ambition is to win the title,” Jin Xiang who turned pro at the age of 17 told Bernama.
More popularly known with his gaming name ‘NothingToSay’, Jin Xiang said he began his career by playing with his friends in low-level tournaments, before joining the Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) football club-backed team in China.
“I was playing with my friends, we created teams and played in small tournaments, and then I joined a Malaysian team three years ago, but we didn’t qualify for any major tournaments.
“Then I received an offer from PSG.LGD, and got a chance to go to China. I went for training in China and was based there for two years,” he said.
Meanwhile, Jin Xiang, who is under quarantine at a hotel since returning to Malaysia on Tuesday, said he planned to use his share of the prize money to buy a house and for investment.
Since getting a visa to China is difficult at the moment, Jin Xiang plans to take a short two-week break and spend some time with his family, before resuming his training ahead of competitions in December.
With Dota 2 being among eight e-sport games set to make a debut as medal sports in the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, he said he would consider representing Malaysia if selected.