M2 World Championship Day 2 recap: Bren Esports, RRQ dominate
The first phase of the Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) M2 World Championship group stage has concluded, with MPL PH champions Bren Esports and MPL ID champions RRQ Hoshi looking dominant as they secured the last two Upper Bracket spots in the playoffs.
Read on for a recap of all the action in day two of M2:
Match 1: Alter Ego 2-0 10S Gaming Frost
The second day of the M2 World Championship began with the first match of Group C — the tournament’s ‘group of death’ — as ONE Esports MPLI champions Alter Ego won back-to-back 12-minute games to soundly sweep Japanese squad 10S Gaming Frost.
The Indonesian squad hit hard and early in game one, showcasing their vaunted chemistry as they won crucial midgame fights to snowball to an easy 12-minute victory with a 17-9 kill lead. 10S Gaming put up a much better fight in game two and kept things even until the 11-minute mark, at which point Alter Ego stopped playing with its food and won a huge clash to immediately demolish their opponents’ base and secure the series sweep.
Match 2: EVOS SG 2-0 DreamMax
Up next was the first match for Group D between Singaporean team EVOS SG and Brazilian squad DreamMax, with EVOS SG starting the tournament strong and pulling out a 2-0 sweep.
Game one was a closely-contested affair, as DreamMax was able to hold EVOS SG to a stalemate for most of the game. However, the Singaporean squad was able to methodically whittle away at DreamMax’s defences to eke out a win just before the 16-minute mark with the kill score at 16-14. The Brazilian squad looked demoralised in game two, however, as EVOS SG doubled their opponents’ kills, 20-10, and took the series after 11 minutes of action.
Match 3: Bren Esports 2-0 10S Gaming Frost
The second match for Group C saw Filipino squad Bren Esports make short work of a beleaguered 10S Gaming Squad, with Bren’s Karl Gabriel “KarlTzy” Nepomuceno putting on back-to-back superstar performances to carry his team to victory.
Bren Esports simply ran over 10S Gaming to start the series, with KarlTzy notching 13 of his team’s 25 kills while only dying once to lead his team to a 14-minute victory.
As if game one wasn’t already a one-sided affair, the Filipino squad absolutely dominated their opponents in just under 12 minutes to secure the series sweep in game two. Bren racked up 23 total kills while holding 10S Gaming to just two takedowns, with KarlTzy finishing with a clean 13 kills and earning the first Savage of M2.
Match 4: RRQ Hoshi 0-0 DreamMax
Up next was the second match for Group D, which saw MPL ID champions RRQ Hoshi put on a tour de force and demolished DreamMax in what might be the most one-sided series of the tournament thus far.
DreamMax came out swinging in game one, but RRQ Hoshi masterfully exploited their opponents’ aggression to methodically secure a 1-0 series lead in 14 minutes and with a 26-10 kill lead.
Sensing they were on the ropes, the Brazilian squad pulled out a surprise Popol & Kupa pick in game two.
It hardly mattered as RRQ Hoshi finished the quickest game of the tournament thus far in just 9 minutes and 41 seconds with a very lopsided 20-2 kill advantage.
Match 5: Bren Esports 2-0 Alter Ego
The most anticipated matchup of the day was a rematch of the ONE Esports MPLI finals between Alter Ego and Bren Esports for the top seed of Group C. While many expected a closely-contested three-game series, Bren Esports ended up dominating Alter Ego, 2-0, to avenge their loss in the MPLI and secure a spot in the Upper Bracket of the playoffs.
Both teams came out swinging early in game one, with Bren Esports emerging victorious in the early engagements and taking control of the game by the 12-minute mark.
Alter Ego were able to defend against Bren Esports’ ensuing push and hold out until the late game, where their stronger scaling line-up could still win them the day. However, a determined Bren Esports squad powered through their rivals’ defenses after a 23-minute slugfest to take the first game of the series.
Sensing blood in the water, Bren Esports turned on the aggression early once again in game two.
Alter Ego were unable to respond this time, however, as their Filipino rivals controlled the map by 10 minutes with a 12-4 kill lead.
Despite a valiant defence by the MPLI champions, Bren Esports bulldozed through their opponents to secure the series sweep at the 15-minute mark with a dominant 18-6 kill advantage.
Match 6: RRQ Hoshi 2-1 EVOS SG
The final match of the day saw RRQ Hoshi outlast hometown team EVOS SG in the only three-game series of the day, and the second of the tournament, thus far for the last Upper Bracket slot.
Both teams were out for blood out from the start of game one, as they brawled through the first 15 minutes with neither being able to hold onto a significant lead.
However, RRQ found an opening in EVOS SG’s formation in a crucial clash that gave them the chance to win game one by the 18-minute mark with the kill score at 19-14.
Game two started out much like game one, as both teams clashed early and often while remaining on relatively even footing. RRQ was able to pull ahead by the 14-minute mark and mount a push, but EVOS SG mounted an impressive defence and turned the siege around to steal a win and tie up the series.
The deciding game of the series started out as a slugfest once again, with both squads repeatedly trading ownership of the lead until the first Lord spawn.
A disciplined RRQ squad was able to secure that crucial objective before EVOS SG, which they used to snowball and secure the series just before the 13-minute mark and with the kill score at 16-13.
Game one was a closely-contested grinder, as both teams remained on relatively even footing until the 15-minute mark. RRQ was able to pull ahead by winning a clutch fight for control of Lord, which gave them the chance to close out EVOS SG after 18 minutes of action with a 19-14 kill lead.
With the results of the day’s matches, Bren Esports take the top seed of Group C while RRQ Hoshi emerge as the team of Group D. Both squads will start the playoffs on 22 January from a favourable position at the Upper Bracket.
Meanwhile, Alter Ego and 10S Gaming Frost from Group C as well as EVOS SG and DreamMax from Group D will proceed to the second phase of the group stage on Wednesday (20 January).
There, they will face RSG, Todak, Unique Deus Vult, and Impunity KH for their tournament lives. Four teams will move on to the Lower Bracket of the playoffs while the other four will be facing early elimination.
For a recap of day one of the M2 World Championship, check here.
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