WITH A chance to punch their ticket to the grand finale, the Filipino champions RSG PH squared off against Indonesian team RRQ Hoshi. But in the end, their efforts were left to dust as RRQ defeated RSG PH in a 3-1 grind, thanks to their opponents' execution in crucial teamfights.
VYN and Clayyy proving clutch in RSG PH matchup
RSG’s Game 1 lineup featured early game skirmishers, with Dylan “Light” Catipon stomping Calvin “VYN’s” rotations.
Then there were moments when Light was able to land crucial Atlas plays in Game 1. But RRQ had their countermeasures ready.
With Deden "Clayyy" Muhammad Nurhasan’s Xavier, RSG couldn’t provide the follow-up as he slowed down their engagements. It likewise didn’t help that he had so much space to unleash his burst.
Jonard Cedrix “Demonkite” Caranto and Eman “EMANN” Sangco would do their best to dish out damage, but they were kept at bay by Albert "Alberttt" Neilsen Iskandar and Schevenko "Skylar" David Tendean, and were ultimately negated in teamfights.
In the end, the Filipino reps took the first loss.
R7 and Skylar takes over Game 2
Game 2 followed the same storyline, where RRQ were smothered at some points in the early game due to Light’s aggression. But as the match went on, it was VYN’s Franco who once again took centerstage.
With his hookshots, he created space for Alberttt to weaken RSG’s setups.
However, it was both Rivaldi “R7” Fatah and Skylar who would take the spotlight in this game. The former outplayed Nathanael “Nathzz” Estrologo as his Esmeralda outplaced Nathzz’s Thamuz, and the latter was crucial in slowing down the potential harassment from EMANN's Clint.
RRQ's experience and teamfight execution dominated the Filipino champs.
RRQ survives RSG PH’s late game efforts in the Lord pit
The Indonesian champs wasn’t able to sweep their Filipino rivals as their signature Franco pick was denied, leading to a one-sided Game 3 drubbing in favor of the Raiders. Light’s Franco completely breezed past the Indonesia reps.
With the formula working wonders for RSG, they repeated the same gameplan in the Game 4 draft.
RSG’s Nathzz did a great job in zoning out Clayyy and Skylar in the early stages of the game, but RRQ, firing on all cylinders after their Game 3 misfire, systematically dissected RSG.
In the 16th minute, Nathzz tried his best to snatch the Lord only for him to encounter a heavy barrage. More potential Lord takeaways were prevented by Alberttt’s Akai and VYN’s Ruby.
Their momentum gone, RSG failed to secure their grand finals berth.
Meanwhile, RSG will battle their way in the lower bracket, awaiting the victor between Omega Esports and Falcon. The outcome of this battle means that, whatever happens, a Filipino team will be going home today.
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