On the first day of the Play-In Stage of the 2022 World Championship (Worlds 2022), there were many results that surprised the League of Legends (LoL) community. But the biggest shock was the result of the clash between Royal Never Give Up (RNG) and DRX.
This is considered one of the most important matches of Group A. The winning team in this matchup effectively secures a 50% chance of topping the group. Moreover, this is a battle between the two regions with the most powerful League of Legends scene in the world today. Therefore, it is also a match of honor and pride for both regions.
Despite being rated higher, RNG suffered defeat. In fact, throughout the match, the “Royal Legion” showed no signs of turning the tide. If players like Kingen or Pyosik from DRX had performed more decisively, the match could have been decided even earlier.
After RNG’s defeat, one of the names most mentioned by the LoL community was… Doinb. The 2019 World Champion is one of the most regrettable absentees at Worlds 2022. Nevertheless, Doinb still has many insights about this year’s Worlds, especially regarding the LPL and LCK teams.
Accordingly, Doinb previously stated: “No LCK team can beat LPL right now. LPL is too strong. Only Gen.G can defeat LPL.” This statement by Doinb was seen as quite accurate at the time, as these were considered the four strongest representatives LPL has sent to Worlds in many years. Everything was fine until RNG was defeated by DRX.
This result has led to Doinb being relentlessly mocked on various LoL community forums. However, in this case, it is hard to blame Doinb when the reality is that many people share the same opinion as the Mid Laner of LNG Esports. But clearly, RNG’s loss is also largely due to DRX’s exceptional performance, especially from Zeka and Deft.
But anyway, these are just the first matches for the teams in Group A. They still have a long way to go before they can reach the Group Stage of Worlds 2022. Both RNG and DRX still have many matches ahead to prove themselves. However, for RNG specifically, they must truly strive to demonstrate that they are still championship contenders if they do not want to become a disappointment for LPL this Worlds season.