Anton “dyrachyo” Shkredov, a well-known professional Dota 2 player, recently shared his candid opinion regarding the current state of the hero Phantom Lancer (PL). The moment, captured from his broadcast, highlights a strong and consistent stance from the carry player.
According to dyrachyo, this isn`t a new take. He stated that he has considered Phantom Lancer “dead” throughout his entire esports career. He emphasized that he would never dedicate practice time to the hero because its viability is exceptionally rare – perhaps surfacing once a year, once every three years, or even never. Consequently, in his view, selecting the hero in competitive play is “absolute nonsense.”
Interestingly, recent professional tournament statistics appear to offer some validation for dyrachyo`s assessment. At the ongoing Riyadh Masters 2025 tournament, Phantom Lancer has seen very limited action, being picked in only six matches. The hero`s performance has been notably poor, suffering defeat in five out of those six appearances.
The solitary victory recorded on Phantom Lancer at the event was achieved by Egor “Nightfall” Grigorenko in a series against Team Yandex. This isolated success doesn`t significantly counter the overall dismal win rate observed, which seems to align with dyrachyo`s long-held belief about the hero`s competitive standing.
While the meta in Dota 2 is constantly shifting, and any hero can potentially rise or fall based on patches and strategies, the current snapshot, supported by both a prominent professional`s strong opinion and recent tournament data, suggests that Phantom Lancer is indeed navigating challenging waters in the professional scene. Whether the “dead hero” moniker holds permanently remains to be seen, but for now, the numbers and expert opinions paint a rather bleak picture for the elusive Doppleganger.
Finley Holt