One more TI champion down, Mu retires

Following in the footsteps of his friend and teammate Hao, Mu, Newbee's mid laner, has decided that it is time for his retirement.

After spending more than two years with Newbee, Zhang 'Mu' Pan has decided that the time has come to end his Dota career. Retiring on a 9 - 12th place finish at The International 6 with Newbee, Mu leaves the mid role open on the team. As of writing, no reliable information about Mu's future has been revealed.

Translation of Mu's Tweet:

 After TI6 ended, my condition has not been too good, and I proposed retirement to my teammates and the organization. This decision was very hard and I considered it for a long time. I'm 27 years old, at this point of my professional career, I feel quite helpless and powerless. No matter how reluctant I am, I think it is time. Thank you to Newbee, thank you to my teammates, and thank you, my fans, for your support. ”

Sticking with Newbee since its formation, Mu has stayed with the team through thick and thin across a 2.5 year period. Newbee's largest peak in performance came shortly after formation in 2014, and just in team for TI4, this resulted in Mu and his team taking home the Aegis and $5 million. However, in the following years, Newbee's performance took a nosedive and the team struggled to qualify for LAN events. The team's performance stayed mediocre until several roster changes were made this year, which ended in Newbee taking top three at the Manila Major and EPICENTER.

Besides Mu retiring in the post-TI shuffle, Chen 'Hao' Zhi Hao will be taking a break of at least six months. The two players have a long history together and have achieved countless top placing at multiple LAN events, making a name for the Mu-Hao pairing in the process.

Headline and banner image provided by Newbee