Back to Black: Blacklist International defends MPL PH crown

MANILA, Philippines – Blacklist International successfully defended their MPL PH title after defeating ONIC PH, 4-1, in the best-of-seven grand finals. 

The road had not been an easy one as the top-seeded team heading into the playoffs suffered a blow when Smart Omega relegated them to the lower bracket. But the defeat did not hinder the defending champions — rather, it fueled the team's hunger to win back-to-back crowns.

Blacklist swept Nexplay EVOS in the lower bracket and set up a rematch with Smart Omega, which lost to ONIC PH in the upper bracket finals. Learning from their mistakes, Blacklist disposed of their rivals, 3-1, to book their place to the M3 World Championships.

One thing was left — defend their title. ONIC PH had not dropped a single game during the playoffs and was the only team to have won a match against Blacklist. It was a match-up like no other.

The slow start to the grand finals was as expected with both teams trading games initially, but ONIC PH lost their nerve after a demoralizing Game Four defeat where Blacklist annihilated them, 17-0. 

In a do-or-die Game Five, ONIC PH seemed to have regained their composure at the beginning as they were able to trade kills with Blacklist. A clash of heroes at the 9:50 saw ONIC PH take down Johnmar "OhMyV33nus " Villaluna, but Blacklist quickly retaliated by eliminating four ONIC PH members with Paul "Beemo" Sergio the only one left standing. Sergio tried in vain to buy some time for his teammates to respawn but with only two seconds left, Blacklist was able to wipe out ONIC PH from the playing field and sealed their title defense.

This second consecutive title seemed sweeter based on the Blacklist's celebration. 

"Dati ;di kami tinitingnan. Inisip nila ‘di kami contender. Tsamba lang daw yung last season," shared team analyst Dexter “DEX STAR” Alaba as the team celebrated in the players' room seconds after the win. "Ngayon, na prove ng team na deserve talaga."

Regular Season MVP Salic "Hadji" Imam was hailed as the finals MVP and was given the honor to raise the trophy during the awarding ceremony. Imam, the newest addition to the Blacklist team, has been through seven seasons of MPL with this being his first ever title.

"Sobrang saya ko po," shared Imam. "Simula Season 2, matagal ko na tong pangarap. Kaya hindi ako humihinto sa pagsali sa MPL kasi gusto ko talaga mag-champion."

"Pinromise namin bibigyan namin siya ng trophy," added coach Kristoffer “BON CHAN” Ricaplaza during the awarding ceremony interview. "Ayan dalawa pa."