The League of Legends World Championship 2021 has turned into an all Korean brawl featuring the top four teams battling in the semi-finals. DAMWON Gaming having won the title for the World Championship 2020 after defeating Suning in the Finals. The remaining title contenders were left with two eSports organisations after DAMWON Gaming has emerged the winner in the nail-biting tussle with T1.
- DAMWON Gaming
- EDWARD Gaming
- Gen.G Esports
DAMWON Gaming means business when they are gunning for the back-to-back World Champion as they looked set to defend their title in the Finals.
The rivalry between T1 and DAMWON Gaming is not new as they have exchanged bouts many times. Their last encounter was at the LCK Summer Finals in 2021 where DAMWON Gaming won over T1 in the playoffs.
DAMWON Gaming 3 – 2 T1
In the first game, T1 had the advantage when Faker helped T1 drew first blood at top lane by teleporting over in the early game. However, T1 weakness at botlane could not contain the pressure and lost their turret which gave Ghost a huge 2k gold lead. There were quite some fair trades but T1 was not able to keep up. The turning point was decided when DAMWON Gaming lured T1 for the baron. T1 grew anxious on the baron and was not able to flip their fortune. T1 subsequently lost their first game within 29 minutes.
By the second game, T1 showed that they are not easy to mess with after catching Ghost at mid game when he was too exposed. DAMWON Gaming tried to gain back control but nothing falls under Faker’s nose. With one of his best champions, Lissandra, he managed to catch DAMWON Gaming off guard several times allowing T1 to gain the advantage. DAMWON Gaming decided to stick to their previous strategy of landing Baron again. Unfortunately, it was swiftly stolen by T1’s Oner with a clever flash and smite it away right in front of DAMWON Gaming’s eyes.
DAMWON Gaming was feeling the pressure when T1 proved that they were no pushovers in the third game. With Faker’s experience and discipline, his Ryze was able to catch ShowMaker in the botlane. He also chased Ghost towards the top and Keria cornered him with his Zilean’s bomb. With their Zilean’s Chronoshift and speed boost, T1 was able to preserve their most important player Faker and also helped guide his team forward to another win.
After two scares from T1, DAMWON Gaming decided to change their strategy. They knew that they had to take down T1’s most important man, Faker, so they regrouped in the fourth game. DAMWON Gaming knew that T1 young team would not be able to recover with their main man down and T1 fall into the trap by making Faker take Ryze again. By 15 minutes, Faker had already died three times. ShowMaker stole the show in the fourth match dominating his kills with his Leblanc and also managed to finish off Faker singlehandedly. The game was forced into a tie after DAMWON Gaming won within 30 minutes.
T1 young guns were nervous at the final match and DAMWON Gaming leveraged on it forcing their abilities and flash on cooldowns. This gave DAMWON Gaming additional advantages in the early game. T1 subsequently picked themselves up and managed to grab the Baron but was subsequently put down by their opponents. Each time T1 tries to regroup for a come back, DAMWON Gaming will push them to the edge. ShowMaker has shown that he is mid prodigy by not giving any chance to T1 after securing an Ace. Eventually, T1 hopes were dented when Faker finally saw his team succumb to their third defeat.
EDward Gaming vs Gen.G Esports predictions
The next semi-final match will feature Chinese EDward Gaming and South Korean Gen.G Esports. It was not a surprise to see Gen.G Esports scrambling their way to the semi-finals because this was their best achievement thus far. It took them many trials and errors to get to where they are today but they are enjoying the ride and see where luck will take them. On the other hand, EDward Gaming has been at their top form throughout the competition and they are aiming to upset whoever is within their path. The Chinese Esports organisation is one of the dominant forces in the China league and they have been number 1 throughout the LPL in the past few years. EDward Gaming has previously won the LPL Summer 2021 after destroying FunPlus Phoenix 3:1 in the grand finals.
Gen.G Esports lineup:
- Kim “Rascal” Kwang-hee – TOP
- Kim “Clid” Tae-min – JUNGLE
- Gwak “Bdd” Bo-seong – MID
- Park “Ruler” Jae-hyuk – BOT
- Kim “Life” Jeong-min – SUPPORT
EDward Gaming lineup:
- Li “Flandre” Xuan-Jun – TOP
- Zhao “Jiejie” Li-jie – JUNGLE
- Lee “Scout” Ye-chan – MID
- Park “Viper” Do-hyeon – BOT
- Tian “Meiko” Ye – SUPPORT
EDward Gaming reached the Semifinals after defeating bitter rival, Chinese Esports Organisation, Royal Never Give Up in the Quarterfinals. Although Gen.G Esports had an easy win over NA opponents, Cloud9, they are proving that they will not be a force to mess with. Gen.G’s key players, Bdd and Ruler have been on-form lately and their teammates will do all to ensure they put up their best performance.
With much more experience and aggression in their games, EDward Gaming will likely progress to the finals and beat Gen.G. Their stronger teamwork and current records would put them on the winning edge as favourites. The prediction for the coming Semifinals will see EDward Gaming win over Gen.G with 3-1 result.
