China’s Royal Never Give Up have finally won their first international League of Legends title. After a grueling four game series with long pauses and back and forth games, RNG came out on top to prove once and for all that the Korean Gods of League of Legends can be slain.
Winning the MSI marks the first time that Uzi has won an international award. Despite his long reputation as the best AD carry player in the world, he had never won an international trophy before. Throughout the tournament he has been the superstar for RNG, hard carrying games when they were behind and solidifying wins when ahead. After yesterday’s victory he has been called out as the best player in the world, a title well deserved as he has definitely been the best player at the tournament.
Raise that trophy, Royal Never Give Up! #MSI2018 pic.twitter.com/FpthbWLfqX
— lolesports (@lolesports) May 20, 2018
Even though Uzi was playing out of his mind all tournament long, credit for the first place finish has to be given to his teammates as well. Uzi has said in the post match interview that he would have never never won without his teammates. His support player, Ming has been a hidden gem throughout the entire tournament, his reliable play always keeps Uzi alive and allows him to constantly seek for dives and aggressive plays. Xiaohu and Letme also stepped up during the finals, Letme was an unmovable wall while Xiaohu was finally able to carry his own weight after struggling during the tournament.
ROYAL NEVER GIVE UP ARE YOUR 2018 MID-SEASON INVITATIONAL CHAMPIONS! #MSI2018 pic.twitter.com/WFgmxThHi6
— lolesports (@lolesports) May 20, 2018
Another story for the League of Legends history books is that of Karsa. He was the jungler for Flash Wolves, but despite all the praise he , he was never able to claim an international title for himself. In a shocking move he decided to leave the Flash Wolves last year and play for RNG, even though he wouldn’t be the starting jungler. After warming the bench for an entire season he got to play yesterday when it mattered most and showed everyone why he is so revered. Through smart pathing and consistent jungle ganks he was able to give his team an early advantage every single game. Without him at the helm the games would have surely been different.
First blood goes to Royal Never Give Up in the top lane! #MSI2018 pic.twitter.com/3Hm7bqmM57
— lolesports (@lolesports) May 20, 2018
RNG winning the Mid Season Invitational might spark a new rivalry between China and Korea, and give us an exciting worlds 2018 in the future where the Koreans might not be the favorite to win the tournament. However, as we have seen in the past, when Korea lost to China at MSI 2015, they came back for revenge during the World Championship and SKT T1 didn’t drop a single game until the finals. Will the MSI 2018 title just be a fluke, or will we see that start of a Chinese Legacy.
