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| Screencap from IESF's YouTube Channel |
by Drew Malihan
IAȘI, Romania - Alexandre "AK" Laverez will go home to the Philippines with a second place finish to his name as he bow down to Pakistan's Atif "Atif Butt" Ijaz on Saturday of the final of the Tekken 7 event in the IESF World Championships 2023, five games to two.
The 22-year-old battled the highly-ranked Pakistani in the final, picking his main character Shaheen against the infamous Akuma for Atif.
However, AK found himself down 0-3 as he cannot win a single game against a much experienced Atif, only getting a round each in Games 1 and 2.
The Playbook Esports standout then opted for a third character in his arsenal and chose Akuma as well for a mirror battle against Atif who did not change, despite having a Leo and a Marduk to choose from.
It was Akuma indeed that finally wins AK a game after a 3-0 outing in Game 4, but Atif clinched the fifth game, three rounds to one.
The Filipino executed a come from behind Game 6 win, three rounds to two, to extend the series to a Game 7, but Atif did not fazed and put a 3-1 master class to close the series.
AK will take home USD 6,000 in cash prize, his best-finish ever in the IESF series, while Atif will bring USD 10,000 back to his home Pakistan, his first IESF win.
Meanwhile, Sergie Jean Pierre "Sergie Mazter" Del Carmen Quintanilla of Peru defeated South Korean Oh "Meo-IL" Dae-il, three games to none, in the battle for third.
Follow him on X: @drew_corner
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