PSG.LGD has managed to become the MDL Changsha Major Champions after a convincing run throughout the tournament. Closing out the Grand Finals 3-0 against VGJ.Storm, it's clear that Team Secret deserved to be on the receiving end of their $400,000 winnings as well as they 2250 DPC points.
BACK TO BACK MAJOR CHAMPIONS!
— LGD Gaming (@LGDgaming) May 20, 2018
We take the MDL #Changsha Major in a convincing fashion, dropping only a single game in the playoffs!
Thank you for watching and cheering for PSG.LGD! pic.twitter.com/ZE8SCo6HAW
PSG.LGD has looked immense after they recovered from their poor Group Stage performance. They dismantled IG.Vitality 1-0 in their first match, and then defeated TNC Pro Team 2-1 in the next round of the lower brackets. A routine 2-0 victory against Newbee soon followed. From there, they had hit their stride and made slight work of Vici Gaming in the Lower bracket finals by winning 2-0.
Game 1 of that match saw, PSG.LGD choosing to open the series with an aggressive lineup which begun to pay off in just 15 minutes as they wiped Vici Gaming from the map and took command of the game. Vici Gaming slowly clawed their way back into the game courtesy of some great ganking and to take control of the game for a brief period before the game moved back to a neutral standing. However, LGD managed to hold strong and by 50 minutes took down the enemy base to claim the game.
Game 2 of the series saw domination from LGD instantly as Somnus on Queen of Pain went Godlike in under 15 minutes as VG fell far behind quickly. However, it was Fy who won his team the game as he saved them from what could have been a disaster with an amazing Snowball on the edge of the Roshan Pit. In control of the game again, LGD took advantage of their lead and ripped through VG once more and by little over 30 minutes they were assaulting the tier 4 towers. Without much contention, in the final moments, the GG came out and victory went to LGD.
Then came one of the most anticipated matches of the tournament VGJ.Storm vs PSG.LGD
Game 1: The first game of the series saw a Spectre pick up by PSG.LGD, which played heavily into the course and outcome. The match was a bit of a roller coaster ride, with peaks and valleys, sharp turns and a swift surge towards the end. In the span of the final four minutes, VGJ.Storm's networth plummeted over 20k gold and PSG.LGD accelerated right to victory.
Game 2: Somnus on Ember Spirit landed an Triple kill by 10 mins in and continued on the warpath through to the end of the game, merciless and ending with a 24/1/22 record. The aggression from PSG.LGD all over the place to start out the series proved they meant business and were going to be the ones calling the shots this match. Falling desperately behind, VGJ.Storm seemed helpless as PSG.LGD rolled over them with ease.
Game 3: By the third game, Death Prophet had become a priority ban against PSG.LGD after letting them run over with it once, and failing to have the same success with it in Game 2. With their backs against the wall and their tournament lives on the line, VGJ.Storm set out with their strongest performance of the series so far. Unfortunately for the North American based team, a Storm pick and their resolve to step up their performance wasn't enough to stave off a defeat and a 2nd place finish at the end.
With this tournament, PSG.LGD has secured an invite to The International 8 and move into 2nd place in the DPC table. There are just two more DPC events left – ESL One: Birmingham 2018 and The China Super Major. The Minimum number of points required to receive a direct invite has now been lowered to 4162 which virtually guarantees Mineski a spot as well.
The last two spots of the 8 direct invites are still wide open for any team which makes the upcoming two majors all the more crucial. The next DPC event, ESL One: Birmingham kicks off on 23rd May.