Ravdan “Hustla” Narmandakh is a talented support player who plays for Reality Rift and has greatly improved his skills in this year’s Dota 2 season.

Hustla caught up with ONE Esports to talk about how he started his Dota 2 career, competing online, and his expectations for the ONE Esports Dota 2 SEA League.


ONE Esports: Could you tell us the story of how you got into competitive Dota 2?

I started playing Dota six years ago. In the last year or two, I decided to go pro. And, last year, Reality Rift picked me from my pub game performances. I played a few games with them, then they decided to have me join. They were looking for a Position 4 player [at the time].

Your team, Reality Rift has been competing in multiple online events this year with mixed results. How do you feel about the team’s performance lately?

This year started with us qualifying for the [Dream League Season 13] Major, and that was really nice. But lately [we’ve been] struggling a bit. I’m not really happy with it right now. The team’s not really happy with that.

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, all your matches are played online. What are your thoughts on competitive online matches?

At the very least, I’m happy to [still be able to] compete in tournaments, even under lockdown.

Does playing online constantly have an effect on the team’s performance?

For me, not really. It’s like — you’re still playing a lot of games. And [playing] online is just more stressful. [Whether you win or lose,] it’s the same thing.

Valve has announced they’re moving forward with regional league competitions for the DPC. Do you agree with this competitive Dota 2 format?

Of course, I prefer the old format. But as a player, I don’t really care that much. Because you start to care about that only if you’re in the top 3 teams.



Which teams are you excited to face in the SEA League? And are there any players you’re looking forward to going up against?

I’m always happy to play against Fnatic, because I’m a big fan of Daryl Koh “iceiceice” Pei Xiang.

How do you expect Reality Rift will do in the tournament?

I think we’re going to show some good [Dotes] for the fans. Yeah, I believe we’re going to do much better in this tournament.

Is there any team outside of the SEA you would want to go up against in the future?

I watch Team Liquid’s games, and I’m excited to play against them. They’re really strong now.

As a support player, do you have a favorite hero to play?

I like to play Rubick, and I’m down to play this hero in every single match.

What are your thoughts on the current state of the Dota 2 meta right now? Are there any heroes you would like to be nerfed or buffed?

I think some [sneaky] heroes need to be nerfed – like Riki or Lycan. Those heroes are always annoying. They need to be nerfed in speed or damage.

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