One of the most controversial names in CSGO in 2018, Shuaib ‘D0cC’ Ahmad, will play at PLG Grand Slam alongside one of the most famous names in the European game. D0cC will be joined by Adil ‘ScreaM’ Benrlitom in representing Tunisian side guccixD at the event, which will be held in DU Forum on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, and feature a $100k prize pool this time around, having been a regional with $5,000 on offer last year.
With 40% of the guccixD squad that qualified through the Levant and Africa section now replaced by high-profile European players, there is a question about the integrity of the event after these moves, but the organisers won’t mind. ScreaM is a player that still commands incredible interest across social media, and D0cC has hit the headlines on a few occasions as his enigmatic story unfolded before our very eyes.
Related: PLG Grand Slam CSGO schedule and live streams
The 18-year-old will line up alongside ScreaM, Erik ‘truth’ Hansen Dyrnes, Bayram ‘Bramz’ Ben Redjeb, and international nomad Kristjan ‘fejtZ’ Allsaar. According to HLTV, guccixD were forced to make this move after Hamza ‘mason’ M'hamdi and Daly ‘HaylamaN’ Mami were ruled out of the tournament due to visa issues, leaving them with just a single Tunisian representative, and again highlighting how visa issues are still a blight on esports in too many cases.
Not his first rodeo
This is in-fact not the first LAN D0cC has attended, and sources on Reddit claim he has played with ScreaM at LAN too, but with $100k on the line this is by far the biggest event of his career to date. Due to start on December 13th and featuring some teams on the edge of the top 20, PLG is far from tier one, but should still attract decent views, especially with two European stars due to appear.
Arguably the biggest team in attendance will be Fnatic, who ScreaM recently represented as a sub, while the new G2 line-up and HellRaisers will also be among the favourites to make the latter stages. Outside of those sides, Tyloo should be contenders but have had a poor second half to the year, and INTZ eSports have a massive amount of talent, but very little coordination going off their recent LAN performances.
GuccixD will line up in Group B, alongside Tyloo, AUS side Grayhound Gaming and the UAE's NASR esports. After decent performances at international LANs recently, Grayhound will expect to make it out, alongside the Chinese side, and with a day to practice together guccixD are going to struggle to match those established teams for communication and teamwork.
Overall, it’s unlikely guccixD will win the event, but ScreaM and D0cC are both looking for longer term contracts, with the young Dutchman linked with a move to Sprout recently. All eyes will be on their games, and if they can catch fire here we could see an unlikely new star join the ranks of established CSGO pros come 2019, which is always a good thing.
Image credit: PLG
