On the first day of the second qualifier for the SEA Games 31 in LMHT, the spotlight match was the long-awaited duel between SBTC Esports and GAM Esports. With SE currently struggling in form and having never beaten GAM since its establishment, the “Pink Chick” was naturally seen as the underdog. A straightforward victory for GAM was what everyone anticipated for this matchup.
However, every match holds surprises, and SE truly created the first earthquake for the Vietnamese LMHT scene in the 2022 season. Not only did they defeat GAM, but SE also convincingly swept the VCS Winter 2021 runner-up with a score of 2-0. Notably, in SE’s victory, two former GAM players, Spot and Palette, performed exceptionally well. Alongside the consistent performance of Celebrity, it can be said that Spot and Palette were the key contributors to SE’s victory.
And the achievement of the “Pink Chick” has caused the entire VCS to “explode”. Fans of this team and individuals from SE, as well as fans of Teacher Ba, could not hide their joy. Even the casters and players from the “Pink Chick” could hardly believe that this victory was real. After all, since the team’s inception, SE has never once won against GAM, not even a single game. Teacher Ba also quickly sent his “thanks” to Levi for helping him “get out of the cave” after previous losses to Team Secret and Burst The Sky Esports.
On the other hand, GAM fans could not hide their disappointment upon witnessing the heartbreaking loss of their team. GAM had a great laning phase but struggled in team fights. Notably, ADC Divkid became the target of most GAM fans as he frequently got caught and taken down quickly before he could showcase anything. This pushed GAM into disadvantageous team fights, leading to defeat despite holding many advantages, especially in game 2.
However, overall, this victory serves as a valuable lesson for GAM, both in the remaining matches of the SEA Games 31 qualifiers and in the VCS Spring 2022. They performed well in the laning phase thanks to skill and experience, but were too disjointed in team fights. Not only Divkid, but every GAM player shares responsibility for this loss and needs to make quick adjustments if they want to avoid regret during the decisive phase of the season.
As for SE, despite their poor performance in the VCS Spring 2022, the “National Circus” showed a completely different face in their victory over GAM. This achievement will surely be a massive morale boost to help SE fight through the remaining matches in the SEA Games 31 qualifiers and VCS Spring 2022, hoping for a better outcome than last season.