Worlds Wrapped - Groups Day 1
The first day of groups kicked off in New York City, with major regions facing off in some historic rivalries. Let's break down the biggest talking points from today's games.
FNC Demolish C9
Groups kicked off with a clash between two of the most storied organisations in Western League of Legends. FNC looked good after finishing first in their play-ins group, while we had yet to see C9 since their clean run through the LCS playoffs.
It didn't take long for FNC to channel their play-ins form, as they took swift and assertive control of their game. FNC drafted a very smart team comp with Ornn top, Renata Glasc support, Azir mid and Maokai jungle. This gave them multiple AoE engage tools, which they used to attack C9 from all angles:
Meanwhile, Humanoid continued his incredible performance from play-ins on Azir, racking up a ton of farm and topping the damage charts in fights.
A Surprise Upset in Group D
The day turned from bad to worse for the rest of the LCS. With RNG proving they could fall in their loss against DFM, 100T were heading into groups with a real shot of making it out. If they could recreate DFM's magic and take advantage of the volatile nature of best of 1's, perhaps they could claim second place.
However, their chances were dealt a surprising blow by CTBC Flying Oyster. The #1 seed from the PCS were heading into the day as underdogs, but proved they were not to be underestimated. Their jungler Gemini was relentless on Viego, helping set up his ADC Shunn to finish 10-0 as Kai'Sa.
Despite losing against tournament favourite JGD, EG put up a great fight. They scrapped with JDG early and managed to secure 3 drakes, but the game turned in JDG's favour after a decisive fight in the mid lane. JDG prevented EG from picking up the Ocean Soul, and eviscerated EG in the final fight:
Standings
The LCK and LPL had a fantastic start to groups, with each region finishing with a 2-1 score. T1 had a monster performance after they annihilated the reigning world champions EDG in 22 minutes, and frankly made it look easy. Gen.G experimented with a fasting Senna/Singed bot lane, but it wasn't enough to take down the MSI champions in RNG.
Play Of The Day
Damwon Kia – the 2020 Champions – are back with a vengeance after losing the Worlds final last year, and ShowMaker reminded everybody why his name is to be feared. He carefully dodged G2's multiple engage tools, before finding the perfect angle to push all of them into the waiting arms of Camille.
This play was patient and beautifully poised.
Groups will continue tomorrow when Top Esports, Rogue and GAM Esports make their tournament debuts. DWG and JDG close out the day in what will likely be the battle for first place in group B; you won't wanna miss it.