Two Israeli players, Neta “33” Shapira (Tundra) and Tal “Fly” Aizik (Shopify Rebellion) are reportedly not joining their team to Indonesia to take part in the upcoming Bali Major.
Tundra Esports finished their Dota Pro Circuit WEU Division 1 Tour 3 with a fantastic clean sheet record. Some of its players, like Wu “Sneyking” Jingjun, Martin “Saksa” Sazdov, and 33, are being praised for showing significant improvement in patch 7.33. However, amidst their excitement for the Bali Major, 33 who has been carrying Tundra in this season stated that he would not be joining his team in Bali.
In an interview session after their victory against D1 Hustlers at DPC WEU Tour 3, 33 said that his team would prepare a special bootcamp ahead of the Bali Major along with a selected stand-in to replace his position in Bali.
In North America, the Shopify Rebellion team finally won their first DPC NA title after dethroning TSM and went on undefeated in Tour 3. However, similar to 33, several social media reports have recently stated that Fly, a crucial member of the Shopify Rebellion, may not make it to Indonesia.
Getting too political?
So far the two players have not provided an explanation regarding their absence from the Bali Major. Nonetheless, the dota community in Indonesia highlighted two major issues that likely influenced their decision: Visa regulations for Israeli nationals and Bali’s political stance against Israel.
Technically, those who hold Israel citizenship will have a more difficult time securing Indonesia visa compared to other regions. With such a lengthy process, it is difficult to estimate whether 33 and Fly visas can be approved in a timely manner.
Outside of Visa, Bali has recently been in the spotlight for its political stance against Israel. Two major sporting events, the U-20 World Cup Football 2023 and the ANOC World Beach Games 2023 are the latest examples. The U-20 World Cup in Bali got cancelled since the local government refused to allow Israel to compete. Shortly after, the Governor of Bali, I Wayan Koster, stated that Israel representatives in the ANOC World Beach Games 2023 will be banned, prompting severe objections from Israel.
According to the Governor of Bali’s statement, he opposed Israel due to their ongoing conflict in the Middle East with the Palestinian. He is adamant that he would not compromise with the “war criminal”.
This will undoubtedly be a difficult time for Tundra and Shopify Rebellion, who are still vying for more DPC points in order to compete in The International 12 in Seattle, USA. Employing stand-ins in the Bali Major tournament will certainly affect the chemistry between the players and the coaching team.
