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| Selangor scored a major boost in its Golden Road quest by winning the IESF WEC MLBB tournament. MLBB (file photo) |
LAS PINAS--Anchored upon the core of reigning MPL Malaysia champion Selangor, the said country stole the IESF World Esports Championships men's Mobile Legends Bang Bang gold away from Philippine esports team Sibol, powered by RRQ Kaito, by sweeping them, 2-0, in the best-of-three finals on Friday night at the SEF Arena in Riyadh.
It was a revenge of sorts for Selangor as they were swept by RRQ Kaito in the group stages.
"We knew that they were gonna adjust their draft actually of course it was the grand finals and we already beat them in the group stages. So it made sense that they were gonna change something in their draft, which they did. So kudos to coach Arcadia (Michael Bocado) for doing a very good job in drafting," RRQ Kaito head coach Paulo "Pauloxpert" Munsayac said in concession in a mix of English and Filipino during an online press conference on Saturday.
The Red Giants' IESF WEC gold, although they brought in JP Niners gold lane player Ealtond "Lolealz" Rayner as their "import" to backstop Ilman "Gojes" Zulkifli, Muhammad "Sekys" Zaman, Hazziq "Stormie" Rizwan, and Muhammad "Yums" Suhairi, further solidified Malaysia as a rising force in the professional MLBB scene.
"I would say so that they are now keeping up with Indonesia and the Philippines," Munsayac further said.
"I think they deserve to have that recognition that they're a threat on the world stage as well."
So what makes Selangor so strong even if without Filipino imports Mark "Kramm" Rusiana and Vincent "Innocent" Banal as the club, also the 2024 MPL Malaysia grand slam champ and reigning MLBB Midseason Cup king, looks to complete the walk through the "Golden Road" by winning the M6 World Championship on home soil?
Munsayac shared two factors based on how Selangor beat RRQ Kaito in the IESF WEC finals.
"The most important thing is the river control. River control is number one," Munsayac said.
The river is where much of the team fights in the early and middle games commence as both teams look to secure the turtles and the lords that could give them a huge advantage down the stretch.
Munsayac also said that Selangor prefers a high-octane offense which could give other teams headaches at least in the early game.
"Di nyo sila pwedeng sabayan sa team fight kasi yun yung forte nila. Gusto nila team fight nang team fight eh (You cannot just engage with them in a team fight because that is their forte. They want to force team fights)," he continued.
Mix those two factors, and Selangor is on a good track to winning.
Twenty-two teams, including MPL Philippines Season 14 finalists Fnatic Onic Philippines and Aurora, now stand in the way of Selangor in its quest to finish the year with another championship gold by winning M6.
Munsayac believes Selangor is not that invincible as long as Fnatic Onic PH and Aurora play it right as the two Filipino squads are now tasked to ensure that the MLBB world title stays in the Philippines for the fifth straight edition.
"Knowing that the Filipino region has a strong macro (management), like Aurora and Fnatic Onic PH. Pick the team fights they want to be in wisely and then just use their macro. Just be patient," Munsayac added.
Team captain Denniel "XNova" Gomez chimed in and said, "Mas focusan nila yung turtle fight. Kasi kung mama-macro nila sa turtle fight yun, doon lang malulugi yung Malaysia (They should focus on the turtle fight because if they play their macro right in the turtle fight, that is where Malaysia will lose)."
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