With 10 players in their arsenal, each with a pedigree based on their experience playing in the MPL, MDL, SEA Games, and other international tournaments, coaches Kristoffer "BON CHAN" Ricaplaza, Aniel "Master the Basics" Jiandani, and Dexter Louise "Dex Star" Alaba will have a lot to ponder.
However, Tier One Entertainment CEO Tryke Gutierrez already revealed in an exclusive interview with SPIN.ph, some hints regarding the main five.
There was already one name that stood out, the man who has been a saving grace for Blacklist since his arrival, Edward "Edward" Jay Dapadap. So far, Edward's main competition for the role is Renejay "RENEJAY" Barcarse, however the previous tournaments reveal Edward to be in GOAT-levels compared to his rival.
"Edward is going to play, he is going to be part of the main five, that I can say. For the others, we're not sure yet. The slots are open for the rest," said the Tier One CEO.
While Edward is already a shoe-in starter, there are others who have also guaranteed their slot, however there are question marks to be raised. Stephen Jasper "Sensui" Castillo is the team's lone jungler, but he could be tested depending on the outcome of the first three weeks.
"Another thing, Sensui will have to play because Rindo is part of the MDL team and he can't be in the roster until the third week. So Sensui and Edward are two players that will definitely play in the main five at least for the first three games," explained Gutierrez.
And to spice things up, Tryke has something in mind for the battle against Omega Esports.
"And for the sake of Omega, Oheb will play against Omega. (laughs) I told this to the team, kanit anong mangyari, i-shuffle niyo, si Oheb lalaro against Kelra."

Proper preparation
Given Blacklist's 10-man roster, it can be argued that the team has more options now compared to in Season 9 when the team was streched thin without the Royal Duo. Back in Season 9, Blacklist failed to make the playoffs as the team looked very disjointed without the V33Wise tandem.
"I think in terms of preparation, this is the time that we didn't lack preparation," reflected Gutierrez. "In Season 9 when V33Wise didn't play, we learned a lot of lessons definitely. If not getting into the playoffs is not the biggest lesson we ever had, then what is right?"
Now with so much time at their disposal, the team made sure that they are better equipped now.
"So after that we really prepared for it, meaning we had a 10-man team, we actually went through a battle royale with that 10-man team, they were continuously competing against each other for their personal slot for the main team."
And was their preparations enough to decide on their main roster? Not really according to Tryke.
"Up until last week, we still changed some individual players for the main five because we weren't sure so out of all the 10 people, we only had to pick five diba?"
But at the end of the day, it will all boil down to the final outcome.
"So I am part of the group and I've been seeing all the scrims, so I'm part of the decision body together with the coaches, so I guess in terms of preparation, this time it's different, but at the end of the day, pagdating mismo sa games, we'll never know what will happen," narrated Tryke.
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