The International 2017 is in the books, so it's time to look back at the players who defined the event.
The following all-tournament teams are based on players' statistics but are necessarily informed by a high dose of subjectivity, particularly in how their best heroes and standout performances shaped the tournament as a whole. Each team consists of one player at each of the five positions (including distinction between four and five position supports).
First team
Carry: Wang "Ame" Chunyu, LGD Gaming
Long known for being a team built around Lu "Maybe" Yao, LGD's stock skyrocketed in the weeks before TI when the team began playing around its 20-year-old carry. After a breakout performance in Mars Dota 2 League, Ame was the only player at The International 2017 to eclipse 600 gold and experience per minute (635 GPM, second among players; 639 XPM, first). His average 232.5 last hits at 25 minutes was the highest by far at the event; no other player got more than 200. He also led the tournament in tower damage, both overall (5,700 per match) and in the first 15 (828, 100 ahead of any other player in the Main Event).
Mid: Song "Sccc" Chun, Newbee
Prior to its dramatic Grand Finals run at TI7, Newbee had been known as a team that became predictable and perhaps overly safe late in major LAN events. Newbee broke this mold in large part thanks to Sccc, who played 20 different heroes in 27 games. Though this is one off Miracle's tournament record (21; no other player was over 15), it's more impressive for two reasons: First, it came in eight fewer games, with Sccc playing 27 and Miracle at 35. Second, Sccc played mid every game. Along the way, he set the GPM record for a pro Morphling (940) and secured Newbee's place in the Grand Finals with a signature performance on his Shadow Fiend against LGD.Forever Young. He gets bonus points for being the most photogenic player at the event.
Offlane: He "Inflame" Yongzheng, LGD.Forever Young
Inflame was statistically the best offlaner at TI7: His 452 GPM and 520 XPM led all players at the position, while his 5.31 kills per match was behind only Saahil "Universe" Arora of Evil Geniuses. The 24-year-old's consistent decision-making was key to LFY's teamfight-oriented, tempo-controlling style. He posted five straight wins as Nature's Prophet, including averaging a combined 23/3/42 (kills/deaths/assists) in three wins against Newbee, OG and TNC that all ended within 35 minutes. He went 4-1 as Batrider, and his lone loss was an incredible 14/4/19 performance that kept LFY in the final game of the lower bracket semifinal against Liquid, ending in a hard-fought 49-minute defeat.
Support (4): Maroun "Gh" Merhej, Team Liquid
No player's hero pool more defined his team at TI7 than Gh. He is 19-5 in his career on Keeper of the Light and is the only player over 400 GPM on the hero in three or more games. While other teams played around their mid or carry position, Liquid won big games playing around Keeper of the Light's Aghanim's Scepter, most notably a dramatic 42-minute comeback in its opening Main Event series against Invictus Gaming. Gh is 19-3 as Io, easily the highest win rate of 88 players with 10 or more professional appearances, and his presence forced first-phase Io bans in 30 of Liquid's 35 TI7 matches. To cap it off, Gh was an incredible 12-1 as Earthshaker at TI7, the only player-hero combo with double digit wins.
Support (5): Kuro "KuroKy" Salehi Takhasomi, Team Liquid
Liquid is KuroKy's team. And, from dominant group stage performances to the tears of celebration he shed at the end, TI7 was KuroKy's tournament. Despite a record 954 career wins, the veteran captain had yet to reach the pinnacle of his esport. KuroKy had lost in the Grand Finals of two Majors (Shanghai and Manila, with Team Liquid) and The International 2013 (with Natus Vincere). KuroKy's TI7 drafts will go down as some of the finest by any captain, in part because Liquid's drafts were so distinct from any other team. Liquid went a combined 30-3 on Necrophos, Venomancer, Nature's Prophet, and Keeper of the Light; all other teams at the event were 32-41 combined on those heroes. Six of the eight times Earthshaker and Necrophos were drafted together were by Liquid, and the team went 6-0 with that composition, including the final two games of Liquid's Grand Finals sweep. Dazzle (22-5) and Nyx Assassin (32-13) had the highest overall TI7 win rates of the 68 heroes picked 10 or more times -- and Liquid picked the two only once combined.
Second team
Carry: Roman "Resolut1on" Fominok, Team Empire
Joining the team at the last minute as a stand-in for Vladimir "Chappie" Kuzmenko, Resolut1on delivered a stellar performance at The International for the second straight year, carrying the underdog Team Empire to a top-eight finish. He is the only player to finish in the top-three in GPM (598, third) and kills per match (9.33, second). His 9.95 kill/death/assist ratio and 661 GPM during the Main Event were both the highest of any player in that phase of TI7.
Mid: Amer "Miracle-" Al-Barkawi, Team Liquid
From a purely statistical standpoint, Miracle- was probably the top mid player at TI7. He was the only player in the top-five in both GPM (595, fourth) and kills per minute (0.237, second), and was also No. 3 in tower damage with 5,400 per match, just behind (Resolut1on's 5,500. His 21 heroes in 35 games were also the most of any player, and the 18 kills he racked up as Terrorblade in the deciding Lower Bracket Final match against LFY is tied for the second-highest total at the Main Event.
Offlane: Ivan "MinD_ContRoL" Borislavov Ivanov, Team Liquid
Channeling his inner Bulldog, MinD_ContRoL turned in vintage TI3 split-pushing performances as Nature's Prophet, carrying Liquid to four straight wins, including the deciding game of its lower bracket series over Virtus.pro, both of its Lower Bracket Final wins over LFY and the opening game of the Grand Finals against Newbee. He went 13-1 combined as Nature's Prophet and Venomancer during TI7.
Support (4): Tue "Ah fu" Soon Chuan, LGD.Forever Young
The Malaysian newcomer ignited LFY's late-season run with a breakout performance at EPICENTER. At TI7, he went 10-1 combined on Night Stalker and Earth Spirit, and Ah fu averaged one assist every 2.5 minutes, the best among all players at the tournament. His 13.74 career assists per game is the top mark of 493 players with 150 or more pro Dota 2 appearances.
Support (5): Zeng "Faith" Hongda, Newbee
The decorated veteran came within one series of being the first-ever multiple-TI winner. Though often overshadowed by Wong "ChuaN" Hock Chuan on their TI2 champion Invictus Gaming squad, Faith has quietly come into his own as a captain and drafter and was able to break Newbee out of the ultra-conservative drafts and playstyle that had hurt the team in previous premier LANs.
Third team
Carry: Lasse "MATUMBAMAN" Urpalainen, Team Liquid
Matu's trademark flexibility and high-pressure, high-tempo play were on full display throughout TI7, surprising opponents with Broodmother early and Necrophos late. His shorts very well may deserve their own place on this list.
Mid: Lu "Maybe" Yao, LGD Gaming
Maybe's farming numbers at TI7 (528 GPM) were low by his standards, but that was a calculated strategy by LGD. Maybe was still the only player to average more than one kill per four minutes at the tournament, including 38 kills total in back-to-back games to eliminate four-time Major champion OG.
Offlane: Lin "Xxs" Jing, Invictus Gaming
While not the best tournament by his own standards, the young Chinese offlaner, who will turn 18 next week, still posted a 5.63 KDA ratio, easily No. 1 at his position. His incredible 13-2-10 Earthshaker performance sealed iG's upset win over Liquid in the opening series of the Main Event.
Support (4): Yazied "YapzOr" Jaradat, Team Secret
The lone representative from a bottom-eight team on this list, YapzOr's 0.357 assists per minute average was top-five among all players at the event. He was 7-2 combined on Nyx Assassin and his signature Rubick, which pushed Liquid to the brink of elimination in the final game of a second-round Lower Bracket series.
Support (5): Chen "Victoria" Guanhong, LGD Gaming
The list of deserving supports was long, but Victoria had an exceptional tournament and just edges out LFY's Leong "ddc" Fat-meng. Victoria averaged almost an assist per 2.5 minutes, a hair behind Ah fu for the top assist rate of the tournament. He went 6-3 on his signature Kunkka and 8-2 combined on Night Stalker and Nyx Assassin, propelling LGD to their top-four finish.