Despite some frightening pressure from PSG Talon, Royal Never Give Up won their semifinal match of the Mid-Season Invitational 2021 and secured a spot in the final.
RNG were favorites to win the matchup against PSG after going 8-0 during the initial Group Stage and 7-3 in the Rumble Stage for MSI. PSG, on the other hand, had struggled against some teams during the Rumble Stage and went 6-4 overall after going 4-2 during the Group Stage. While PSG did take the second game off RNG during the match, the League of Legends Pro League representatives used their superior macro play to close out the semifinal 3-1 with back-to-back wins.
PSG aggression rewarded
The draft went in RNG’s favor during the first game of the series thanks to a Tristana and Morgana jungle pick. PSG still managed to sneak through an Azir and Gnar top, but they RNG out-scaled them as the game clock ticked up. The game went the distance, ending after a back-and-forth 46-minute affair that featured seven dragons and two Barons. RNG’s Shi “Ming” Sen-Ming had a perfect game on Braum, finishing with zero deaths and 12 assists by his team destroyed the enemy Nexus. Yuan “Cryin” Cheng-Wei, also from RNG, successfully got a triple-kill on Orianna to push his team that extra inch and defeat PSG.
Despite the loss, what a tournament from @PSG_Talon! #MSI2021 pic.twitter.com/WY9U74ITMB
— LoL Esports (@lolesports) May 21, 2021
PSG did not allow their loss to RNG during the first match to cloud their hunger for victory. After securing Tristanna for themselves the second time around, PSG dominated RNG in the early game. They took the first two dragons and eventually made a play top-side to earn Chiu “Doggo” Tzu-Chuan his third kill on Tristanna. Another triple kill, this time from Doggo, was the final nail in the coffin for RNG, who were taken down at 29 minutes without getting a single tower for themselves.
RNG reassert control of semifinal
With the score tied at 1-1, RNG had to answer back with some power of their own if they wanted to meet expectations. In the third match, Tristanna fell back into the hands of Doggo, but he was unable to apply the same pressure he did during the second match. It was Chen “GALA” Wei on Kai’sa that took over the game the second time around to secure RNG the lead in the series, 2-1.
PSG now had their backs against the wall with RNG looking to prevent another counter-punch and earn their spot in the MSI Final. GALA picked Kai’sa again during the fourth match, relying on his success with her in previous matches. It was this continued focus on the bottom side of the map that earned RNG the advantage over PSG.
#MSI2021 Finalists: @RNGRoyal! pic.twitter.com/i9qlrfRjR0
— LoL Esports (@lolesports) May 21, 2021
Compared to the other matches of the series, this game was by far the bloodiest, with the final kill tally of 24-18 in favor of RNG. With a staggering 10/3/7 performance from GALA on Kai’sa, PSG stood no chance against the inevitable gold advantage RNG had built up in the late game. After just 36 minutes, RNG took the final game of the series from PSG to finish the semifinal  3-1. They will now face the winner of DWG KIA and MAD Lions.
Published: May 21, 2021 03:17 pm