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| Photo from Moonton |
by Drew Malihan
QUEZON CITY - Three more teams etch their first wins in the M5 World Championships inside the EVM Convention Center as the tournament kicks off the first day of the group stages Saturday.
Three champions of their respective regions - Fire Flux Esports of Turkey, ONIC Esports of Indonesia, and HomeBois of Malaysia - proved to be the better teams of their respective ties as all of them listed 2-0 sweeps.
Earlier, AP.Bren started the M5 festivities with their own 2-0 sweep of Burmese Ghouls.
Fire Flux's gunfire stalls Team SMG's momentum
Two long games were needed by Fire Flux to grab their first win of Group B as they trample MPL Malaysia runners-up and M5 Wildcard qualifiers Team SMG.
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| Photo from Moonton |
Jungler Sidar "Tienzy Menteşe became the focal point for the Turkish organization's victory, registering both MVP performances of 2/2/12 with the Baxia in the first game and a 8/3/4 performance with the Joy in the second game, capped with superior jungle control over counterpart Kenneth "Saxa" Fedelin.
Aeliff Adam "Smooth" Md Ariff did not have the best of days in the entire series, getting seven deaths in Game 1 and six in Game 2, with Bariş Ali "Alien" Çakir getting most of the advantage in their lane battle.
HomeBois repeats over struggling Geek Fam
MPL Indonesia's runners up Geek Fam ID were still in the hunt for their first win after a 2-4 defeat to ONIC as they conceded their fifth series loss in top-tier tournaments against Malaysian champs HomeBois.
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| Photo from Moonton |
It was a repeat performance for HomeBois against the Geeks, who defeated the latter more than two weeks ago at the 2023 ONE Esports MPL Invitational, but this time, with Muhammad Nazhan "Chibi" Mohd Nor leading the way with his MVP performances.
The 20-year-old tallied 6/4/11 with the Joy in a 27-minute first game, putting Mark Christian "Markyyyyy" Capacio's 10/2/9 performance with the Bruno to naught, then showed a 3/0/5 master class with the Nolan in 18 minutes of the second game.
HoemeBois endured a long first game with back-and-forth skirmishes only to follow up with a commanding Game 2 as they did not give Manuel "Nnael" Simbolon a single objective.
Kiboy's roam heroics gives Bigetron Sons reality check
Tournament favorites ONIC Esports showed why they are the team to beat in M5 as they delivered a beatdown over Brazilian league runners-up Bigetron Sons to wrap up the first day of festivities.
Nicky "Kiboy" Fernando showed his prowess as one of the best roamers in the pro scene as he grabbed two MVP nods in the game, a 2/0/4 performance with a Tigreal pocket pick in Game 1 and a 0/1/13 showing of the Mathilda in the second game.
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| Photo from Moonton |
The other two of the trio mid, Kairi "Kairi" Rayosdelsol and Gilang "SANZ" also had their best days as they combined for five kill and 32 assists with Kairi only falling once in Game 1.
With the win, ONIC ID get their 11th straight series win, with their last loss more than three months ago in a 0-2 loss against Geek Fam during MPL ID's regular season.
Blacklist vs. RRQ Akira headlines Day 2 matches
Another tournament favorite and former M-series champs Blacklist International will figure in a marquee matchup against Latin America's most dominant team RRQ Akira in the second day of the group stages.
It will be the second time Blacklist will face the Brazilian giants, with their last meetup a 3-1 victory for the Codebreakers in M4.
Eastern Europe and North America will clash heads with Deus Vult and TheOhioBrothers starting the second day, as Carl Vincent "Carvi" Tinio will meet compatriots Chris "Mielow" Enobio and Ziameth-Jei "ZIA" Caluya , while Burmese Ghouls will try to save their M5 run against Mark "Hadess" Lazaro and Team Flash.
Victor "LunnaOMBotak" Monteiro and Bigetron Sons have also their M5 lives on the line as they will face Cambodian champions SeeYouSoon bannered by Filipino players Michael "MP The King" Endino and Clarense "Kusey" Camilo.
Follow him on X: @drew_corner
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