Blacklist International dominates M3 World Championship group stage

MANILA, Philippines — Blacklist International reasserted their reputation as favorites in the M3 World Championship, sweeping the group stages Monday to secure the first slot in the Upper Bracket quarterfinals.

The group stages were composed of quick round-robin single-knockout matches, meaning teams could not afford to make any mistakes if they wish to secure an upper bracket advantage. 

Speaking at the post-match press conference, Johnmar "OhMyV33NUS" Villaluna and Danerie “Wise” Del Rosario both recalled their wariness of the format. V

Villaluna pointed out the format was daunting, especially to teams they haven't faced before, and could surprise them with new strategies. Del Rosario added, "In best of one, one mistake can cause you the game unlike in best of three where you can adjust."

But that fear worked to their advantage as Blacklist International took things slow, analyzed each of their opponents' strategies, and advanced when the opportunity opened.

In their first match against Brazil's Red Canids, the Filipino gamers went in for calculated kills and overpowered the Brazilians, 16-4, in 19 minutes without losing a single turret. Johnmar "OhMyV33NUS" Villaluna was proclaimed match MVP with a 100% kill participation and 14 assists.

The crucial match came soon after as Blacklist International went head to head with Turkey's BEDEL who, at the time of the matchup, shared a 1-0 top standing in Group A. The beginning of the match had BEDEL aggressive with their kills courtesy of Osman “Paranoid” Karademir but Blacklist managed to tie the kill count and traded kills and turrets eventually overpowering the Turkish team, 16-7 in 16 minutes. Kiel "OHEB" Soriano was proclaimed match MVP with 13 kills, one death, and two assists.

The last hurdle for Blacklist International was Latin America champions Malvinas Gaming, which started the match with an early kill. But the Filipino squad quickly dismantled their opponents' strategy, scoring 10 straight kills in just eight minutes of the match. Blacklist International ended things soon after with a final count of 14-4 in just under 10 minutes — the fastest match of the competition so far. Kiel "OHEB" Soriano was once again proclaimed match MVP with seven kills, no deaths and four assists.

As Blacklist International takes a break, Filipino fans will all be watching and rooting for ONIC PH as Group B's matches commence at 2 p.m. on December 7.

All matches are streamed via Mobile Legends: Bang Bang official social media accounts.