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After a dramatic day of League of Legends, Royal Never Give Up (RNG) and Hanwha Life Esports (HLE) comfortably sit at the top of Group C at Worlds 2021. Just like in Group B, the LPL and LCK representatives got the better of their opponents in resounding fashion and now head to the tournament's quarterfinals round.
RNG start strong
RNG had a flawless start to their Worlds run, ending the first round robin atop the group with a 3-0 record. At the opposite end of the spectrum, Fnatic (FNC) suffered heartbreaking defeats and went o-3 in week one.
When they met in the second round robin, however, the LEC squad pulled off a massive upset win over China's powerhouse. FNC finally put one on the win column, crucially keeping the chances for a quarterfinals berth alive, while snapping RNG's undefeated streak.
That heart-stopping bloodfest was perhaps the epitome of the Fnatic experience, initiating a good move only to have the tables turned on them moments later. But in the end, the team rallied to close out the game, largely off the back of their Belgian players. Helmed by Gabriël “Bwipo” Rau, Viego's stuns quite literally saved the game—on multiple occasions. Both the LEC jungler and Yasin “Nisqy” Dinçer on Ryze contributed to 24 of the team's 26 kills. Add to that, Zdravets “Hylissang” Galabov had a deathless and 19-assist showing on Nautilus.
After succumbing to Fnatic, RNG promptly bounced back and locked in their quarterfinals spot by taking down PSG Talon. The kills made the match look closer than it actually was, with the LPL squad pulling ahead in macro and surrendering only one tower the entire game. Yuan “Cryin” Cheng-Wei continued to show his Twisted Fate mastery, going deathless with a 100% kill participation. Before week two, the PSG were second in the standings with a 2-1 record. However, they dropped to 2-3 after also losing against HLE earlier in the day.
HLE show up in week 2
Hanwha had absolutely demolished PSG that game, securing four drakes and ending with 15 kills versus their opponents' two. Going 3/0/11, Jeong “Chovy” Ji-hoon delivered a phenomenal game on Twisted Fate to push his team to victory. Another stellar performer for HLE, Kim “Willer” Jeong-hyeon recorded a monstrous 100% kill participation on Viego. Their opening win sparked the LCK squad's revitalized week 2 showing, having fallen to both PSG and RNG in the first round robin.
In the decisive HLE-FNC matchup, Chovy again proved the difference-maker. LEC's representatives, for their part, fought their heart out, and in fact were leading for most of the game. But the Korean squad proved too strong, as Chovy's LeBlanc dished out over 58,000 total damage to champions and ended with a 9/1/8 KDA.
The victory over Fnatic put Hanwha in prime position to contest RNG for the top seed out of the Worlds group. Cryin on Twisted Fate did his best to push the team forward. However, Li “Xiaohu” Yuan-Hao, who had been struggling throughout the day, had a brutal six deaths on Gwen. In the later stages of the game, HLE's well-coordinated teamfights—which had been sorely lacking in the first round robin—finally shone through.
With Hanhwa and RNG both at 4-2, they forced a tiebreaker to determine seeding. After a quiet early game, the game didn't swing heavily in anyone's favor until past 30 minutes. All the while, the two teams had been trading blows and objectives, with RNG coming out slightly ahead each time. The marginal victories eventually tipped them over the edge, as the Chinese squad claimed the ocean soul and later the baron.
As LPL's representatives looked to end the game, Chovy was pushing mid lane, which left his team unable to defend at the nexus. While Chen “Gala” Wei's Miss Fortune went deathless, Cryin racked up nearly a 90% kill participation on Galio, whose engages alongside Xin Zhao and Rell kept the game firmly in RNG's grasp. Despite turning around their week 1 performance, Hanwha ceded first seed to RNG, though both will be happy with clinching a Worlds quarterfinals slot.
Korea's representatives in HLE, Damwon Gaming, and T1 have advanced from all three groups so far. Gen.G could make it a perfect four for four, currently sitting tied with LNG Esports at 2-1 in Group D.
MAD Lions and Team Liquid are not far behind, though, at 1-2. With Fnatic eliminated from contention, MAD Lions is the only remaining European team who could potentially advance to the bracket stage. But if the bottom two teams cannot turn their fate around, North America's Cloud9 will be the sole Western representative in the knockout rounds.
The group stage concludes tomorrow as the teams vie for the final two spots in the quarterfinals.
