Cover-Credits:
Moonton
After a grueling five-round match, Blacklist International stood victorious against the Indonesian (ID) powerhouse squad, RRQ Hoshi, in the M4 World Championship playoffs. The defending champion survived a slugfest for the upper bracket spot contention to send the ID team down to the lower bracket. Through a post-match interview, Blacklist International’s star roamer Jonmar "OhMyV33NUS" Villaluna believed that one of RRQ Hoshi’s biggest mistakes was not banning her signature hero Estes. This allowed the team to use its iconic UBE (Ultimate Bonding Experience) strategy throughout the match series.
Blacklist International will have a short break and will be back in action on 13th January for its battle for the grand finals slot in the M4 World Championship.
Blacklist International sends fan-favorite squad RRQ Hoshi down to the lower brackets
Blacklist International is now one step closer to a grand finals slot after an exhausting 3-2 victory against RRQ Hoshi.
RRQ Hoshi withstood Blacklist International's storm in the opening game of the thrilling series with a tight 18-19 score in under 20 minutes. The ID squad focused on applying immense pressure on the defending champion’s star roamer OhMyV33NUS which worked in their favor. However, Blacklist International was able to regain its composure in the second game to equalize the series.
The third game saw RRQ Hoshi making insanely risky plays which allowed the squad to keep up with the defending champion’s pace. Rivaldi “R7” Fatah showcased his Grock gameplay after an impressive lord steal. However, Blacklist International was able to counter-attack with a four-to-none kill trade, winning the game in less than 23 minutes.
RRQ Hoshi did not back down and scored a massive victory in game four to open a decider match. While the ID squad was doing fairly well in the early stages of game five, Albert "Alberttt" Iskandar’s Ling was severely deprived of its Purple Buff by Blacklist International which limited his movements and map pressure in the late game. This allowed the defending champions to close the series with a 3-2 victory.
OhMyV33NUS was baffled that RRQ Hoshi did not ban Estes
The Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) hero Estes is the most crucial part of Blacklist International’s signature UBE Strategy. Most teams would choose to ban this hero and force OhMyV33NUS to choose a different hero in hopes of reducing the team’s overall dominance in matches. However, this was not the case for RRQ Hoshi as the team did not attempt to ban Estes throughout the five-round series against Blacklist International.
According to OhMyV33NUS, this was one of RRQ Hoshi’s mistakes which resulted in their loss.
“Actually we were shocked that they didn’t ban Estes throughout the game and I think that’s one of the reasons they lost it.” said the roamer.
Moonton
While Blacklist International will continue its journey in the upper bracket, RRQ Hoshi will have to compete in the do-or-die lower bracket for a grand finals slot against the Cambodian team Falcon Esports on 13th January.
