Team Liquid have benched SabeRLighT

SabeRLighT's stint with Team Liquid was a turbulent one, culminating in an abysmal 9th-13th place finish at TI 2025.

Iconic Dota 2 organisation Team Liquid have benched offlaner Jonáš “SabeRLighT-” Volek after just a year on the roster following their failed campaign to defend the Aegis of Champions in The International (TI) 2025.

SabeRLighT joined Liquid in September last year to replace Neta “33” Shapira, who left for Tundra Esports after leading the organisation to their second Aegis of Champions in TI 2024. SabeRLighT's stint with Liquid turned out to be a turbulent time for the squad. While the team did win four tournaments, the rest of their results were disappointing for the caliber of a TI-winning roster.

SabeRLighT's debut tournament with Liquid at BetBoom Dacha Belgrade last October saw the team only finish 7th-8th. In the following month, they finished sixth in DreamLeague Season 24, first in 1win Series Dota 2 Fall, and 5th-6th in BLAST Slam I.

Liquid then stumbled to kick off 2025, finishing 7th-8th in back-to-back events at FISSURE PLAYGROUND I in January and BLAST Slam II in February. They then scored their first tournament victory of the year at PGL Wallachia Season 3 in March, but then followed that up with a 7th-8th finish in FISSURE Universe: Episode 4 later that month.

In April, Liquid finished 5th-6th in ESL One Raleigh 2025 before winning another PGL Wallachia title for the series' fourth season. While the first week of May saw the team bomb out of BLAST Slam III in 9th-10th place, they still managed to secure a direct invite to TI 2025. However, an eighth place finish at DreamLeague Season 26 later that month did not bode well for Liquid's hopes of defending their title.

The months leading up to TI 2025 continued to be a rollercoaster, Liquid placed third in PGL Wallachia Season 5, won FISSURE Universe: Episode 5, 5th-8th in the Esports World Cup 2025, and third again in FISSURE Universe: Episode 6.

Despite their turbulent season, Liquid still entered TI 2025 as one of the biggest favourites by virtue of being the defending champions. However, cracks were showing as early as the Swiss-format Group Stage, where the team only managed a 3-2 record with wins over BOOM Esports, Nigma Galaxy, and Yakutou Brothers against losses to Team Tidebound and eventual TI 2025 champions Team Falcons.

That forced the defending champions into the Elimination Stage against 33 and Tundra, with the winners advancing to the Playoffs while the losers would get eliminated. Tundra emerged victorious in three games, a surprising result when considering that they were playing with a stand-in. And so, the defending champions were knocked out in 9th-13th place, by far the worst placement of any Liquid squad in TI.

While Liquid did not explicitly state the reasons for SabeRLighT's departure, it is no secret that their abysmal showing with him in TI 2025 was a major factor in the decision.

“During his time with us, [SabeRLighT] has shown tremendous growth, dedication, and positivity. We will continue to support him as he looks toward new opportunities ahead,” Liquid said in their announcement of SabeRLighT's benching.

SabeRLighT also expressed his gratitude to Liquid in a post on his personal X (formerly Twitter) account, saying “With 2 LAN wins and 5 more Top 3 finishes this year im so proud of this year with [Liquid]. I'm grateful for this amazing experience and it allowed me to grow a lot as both a player and a person.”

As of the time of publishing, Liquid have yet to announce SabeRLighT's replacement. Shortly after Liquid's announcement, AVULUS revealed that they have signed the player.