Following a disastrous run at the ESL One Stockholm Major, Evil Geniuses decided to part ways with JerAx.
Following the conclusion of the ESL One Stockholm Major, more roster changes start to take place. Today, Evil Geniuses announced the departure of its captain and position 5 player, Jesse "JerAx" Vainikka.
"As we head into the next season of DPC, we have chosen to part ways with JerAx," the announcement revealed.
Initially, the news of JerAx's departure came online when his name was removed from the official Majors Registration page. This roster change happened on May 22, which was also the final day of Stockholm Major.
JerAx posted a couple of farewell tweets, thanking the organization and players for the 2 seasons they played together. He also stated that he's looking forward to playing position 4 or 5 or even take up coaching next.
A poor performance at the Stockholm Major led to the roster change
The squad of Evil Geniuses was fresh off a disappointing run at the ESL One Stockholm Major. They came to the Valve Major as North America's top seed, however, they quickly fell off expectations. Evil Geniuses didn't make it to the Playoffs and they exit the tournament in last place - taking home no prizes.
EG's lineup comprises well-known players including Artour "Arteezy" Babaev, Abed Azel "Abed" L. Yusop, Egor "Nightfall" Grigorenko, and Andreas Franck "Cr1t-" Nielsen. Despite a strong lineup, EG displayed lackluster chemistry throughout the tournament.
In an exit interview with JerAx at the Stockholm Major, he disclosed that the team had some issues during bootcamp; from gameplay to political issues and lack of rest.
It isn't surprising to see a roster change take place following the disastrous performance; however, the departure of JerAx might just be shocking to some.
JerAx is a two-time TI winner who went into retirement after securing the astounding record. Following 2 years of retirement, he decided to pursue the pro scene once again, landing himself in Evil Geniuses. Instead of his traditional position 4 role, he assumed the position 5 and leadership role. However, it seemed like the transition wasn't an easy task.
Evil Geniuses and JerAx need to find a way to TI11
The International 11 is fast approaching with one more DPC season to complete. Teams are gearing up for the biggest Dota 2 event of the year, and drastic changes are bound to happen. Team Secret recently announced a new carry, Nigma officially removed iLTW from their roster, and some players have also been kicked.
EG currently has 552 DPC points, placing them at a decent 14th rank in the Dota Pro Circuit. The team has a good potential of qualifying for TI11, however, it might not go well if their performance remains the same.
On the other hand, JerAx is now a free agent and will need to find a team before Tour 3 begins.
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