Wild Rift, Free Fire losses mark rocky SEA Games start for Sibol

MANILA, Philippines — It was not the start Sibol expected as the Philippines' national esports team opened on a sour note its campaign in the 31st Southeast Asian Games at the Vietnam National Convention Center in Hanoi.

The men's Wild Rift team, Oasis Gaming (formerly LF Adoption), lost both its matches against Thailand and Malaysia, leaving it last in Group B with a 0-2 record. The best-of-one format proved to be difficult as the Filipino squad suffered a huge defeat against Thailand, 5-20, while the early lead they had against Malaysia went to waste as their opponents slowly gained objectives and came out on top of team fights to eventually take the win, 9-14.

Sibol can still proceed to the final stage of the men's Wild Rift event if they win both matches tomorrow, May 14, and Malaysia loses once again to Thailand.

Meanwhile, Free Fire bets Rise Nation Esports and God Ascends fell behind the pack in the first six maps of the event, quickly getting the boot in most games. Rise Nation managed to finish fourth in Map 1 but slowly descended to last place, while God Ascends scored more kills but did not improve above sixth place in the first six maps.

The seventh and last map of the day saw both Philippine teams improving, securing much-needed kills and ending Map 7 at second and third place for Rise Nation and God Ascends, respectively. The needed kill count and placement propelled Rise Nation from last place to seventh place with a total score of 45 while God Ascends remained at ninth place with a score of 41, miles away from leaders Indonesia and Thailand teams who are already scoring above a hundred in total after the day's games.

Both Philippine teams need to secure a top three map finish in all games scheduled on Sunday, May 15 (subject to change).