In the Land of Dawn, a new Singapore champion has arisen.
EVOS SG put in a dominating performance to rout RSG SG 3-0 to become the inaugural champions of MPL SG. It was EVOS’ second MPL title in a week, after EVOS Legends came from 1-2 to beat Bigetron Alpha 4-2 in a BO7 final to be crowned MPL ID winners.
In Singapore however, their route to the title was a little more straight forward as RSG SG simply had no answer to their opponent’s firepower and tactics.
There was a sense that a real epic was on the cards when RSG SG showed insane form and fighting spirit to emerge from the lower bracket and earn the right to face EVOS SG in the BO5 Grand Finals.
Having finished a disappointing fifth in the regular season, RSG SG’s path to redemption was anything but easy. But they were ruthless, handing Forsaken, Almighty, Notorious Villains and Kingsmen all 2-0 defeats. RSG SG’s Koh ‘Jason’ Wei Hao Jason revealed that sweeping the lower bracket was part of their strategy.
But their winning streak came to a screeching halt when they failed to breach the impregnable wall that was EVOS SG.
Credit: MPL SG
The Grand Finals saw RSG SG performing consistently well in the early game, with few critical mistakes made. However, EVOS SG came into the finals with a plan. Picking up a unique composition of Estes, Aldous and Harith, they caught RSG by surprise. It proved to be a devastating combo that ultimately led to RSG SG’s first game loss. From then on EVOS’ Ng “Pokemon” Jun Hong led the charge as the Playoffs MVP, destroying the opposition through sheer resilience and better end-game play.
EVOS’s trump card
Summoning former captain Stefan “Soul” Chong Ru Chyi from retirement proved to be an inspired choice as the veteran added experience and stability to the EVOS SG lineup.
Said Pokemon of the decision to recall Soul, who played all the games in the playoffs: “It was right after the regular season. We felt that the team was not strong enough. We decided to bring Soul in.”
Credit: MPL SG
“Winning means a lot. This first season will go down in the history books. Hopefully EVOS can maintain the title going forward.”
Winning the inaugural MPL SG earns EVOS SG bragging rights as the best in the +65 – at least until Season 2 later this year.
But as winners of MPL SG, EVOS SG will now get a chance to test themselves against the best in the region in the MLBB Southeast Asia Cup in June. They will be joined by RSG SG, as the top two in MPL SG who make the cut.
Winning team disbanded
But any hopes of seeing this winning EVOS SG team in MPL SG action again may be slim, with possibly three or more members of the Singapore team announcing plans to retire.
One of them is MVP Pokemon.
“I knew that this would be my last season,” he said. “I would either give it my 100 per cent or I won’t try it at all. I’m glad that we were able to go back with the trophy and our names will go down as MPL SG’s first winner.
Soul too is ready to call it quits, this time hopefully for good.
“Again, I’ll be going back to my management role,” he said. “I won’t be playing in the future.”
“The biggest thing that MLBB has changed in my life is the course of my projected career. I did engineering in university and here I am in the esports industry, in a management role (at EVOS).”
For Akihiro “JPL” Furusawa, he hopes to find a successor soon.
“Hopefully, I can stop playing,” he said. “I really want to find another Tank who is at least the same level or better than me – to replace my role.
“I really had a good run and I met really good team mates. All these will be for life, in my memories.”
Last but not least, team captain Andrew “Potato” Lim is also looking to make way for fresher talent.
With new blood like Long “Girl” Shih Kiat joining the team – who also happens to be MPL SG’s Best Rookie – the future for EVOS is bright.
Said Girl: “I’ve picked up a lot of useful tips and improved my skills, learning from some of my more seasoned peers in the game. I hope that there will be more MPL Singapore tournaments in the future to provide more exposure to players like me who are competing at such a high level for the first time.”
These EVOS players have made their mark in the Singapore MLBB scene. Their names and legends will certainly be marked in history as the first-ever winners of MPL SG.
