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| Photo from MPL Philippines |
by Drew Malihan
MAKATI - It took a reverse sweep, but Fnatic ONIC Philippines got the job done as they frustrated Blacklist International with a 2-1 victory, securing their second straight win in MPL Philippines Season 14 at the Green Sun Hotel last Sunday.
With both teams fielding the same main five from their previous games, the hedgehogs bounced back after a loss in the first game.
Newcomer Codebreaker Jhonville "Outplayed" Villar had a strong showing in the first game, with his Claude securing two kills and 11 assists, while John "Perkz" Sumawan assisted in 13 of Blacklist's 14 kills over the course of 18 minutes.
In the later stages of the game, the Glorious Pathway-Zaman Force combo failed to work for Borris "Brusko" Parro and Duane "Kelra" Pillas, as Michael "MP The King" Endino's Bane caught them off guard with a Deadly Catch ultimate, allowing the rest of Blacklist to capitalize on the disorganized FNOP side.
Jann Kirk "Kirk" Gutierrez's Chou took the brunt of the damage with five deaths, followed by Brusko's four with Hylos, while King Cyric "K1NGKONG" Perez's 7/1/4 tally on Fanny ultimately came to naught.
K1NGKONG rebounded with a stellar Ling performance in Game 2, helping Fnatic ONIC tie the series. The jungler secured five kills and four assists in a dominant 10-3 showing for the hedgehogs.
It was a tough day for Jhon Marl "Lord JM" Sebastian, who became a non-factor, finishing the game without a single kill or assist and falling five times with Edith.
Fnatic ONIC's Game 2 performance was flawless—they didn’t lose a single tower while taking down all nine of Blacklist’s and securing all major objectives in just 12 minutes.
Kelra's Harith also bounced back from the Game 1 setback, leading Fnatic ONIC to a 10-5 victory in the deciding game. The gold laner posted a 5/0/3 KDA in 16 minutes.
The final game was closely contested until Kelra managed to steal the lord from MP The King and the rest of Blacklist, allowing FNOP to take down Perkz and Lord JM in the process.
With the win, FNOP now sits in joint second place in Week 1 alongside Smart Omega, while Blacklist has dropped to sixth place with a 0-2 record.
The Codebreakers will face Smart Omega on Friday in hopes of securing their first win of the season, while Fnatic ONIC's lone game in Week 2 will be against Team Liquid PH next Saturday.
Follow him on X: @DMalihan_DPH
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