VCS Summer 2020 has gradually reached the end of the first leg, and the team dominating the tournament is not GAM Esports or the defending champion Team Flash, but Cerberus Esports, a name few expected. This team has almost completely transformed compared to the spring season and has become an unbeaten powerhouse at this moment.
Alongside the dominance of Cerberus Esports, the fierce pursuit between GAM Esports, Team Secret, and Team Flash behind is also extremely exciting. The aforementioned names share the same record of 4-2, tying for second place on the VCS leaderboard, and as fate would have it, all four top teams are set to face each other this afternoon.
First up is the match between Cerberus and GAM, these two teams seem to be completely opposite in terms of playstyle and player composition, creating a very intriguing matchup. Strategically, Cerberus is pursuing a collective and control-oriented playstyle centered around the psychological growth of XuHao, who has truly transformed and played extremely firmly in recent matches.
In stark contrast to that is GAM Esports, which heavily relies on the individual brilliance of stars like Dia1, Kiaya, or Levi. They still maintain basic control, but the main strength of the entire team lies with the solo lane stars, although there are many ADC positions, the bottom lane of the black-and-gold team remains extremely fragile and has often become a weakness for the team.
Meanwhile, Cerberus’s bottom lane has shown significant growth recently as Artemis gradually adapts to the Ezreal – Aphelios meta, while RonOP quickly familiarizes himself with Bard, the strongest Support at the moment. As for Cerberus’s top lane, LL seems to be the weakest position in the lineup as he faces many difficulties when up against a crafty player or a matchup that heavily relies on skill.
Overall, Cerberus is showing excellent form across the entire lineup, while GAM Esports has been quite erratic lately. If they continue to play normally, Cerberus Esports is highly likely to achieve a perfect first leg, while GAM can only hope for the brilliance of their stars to secure a victory.
The other match of this week’s “Friday Showdown” is the battle between Team Flash and Team Secret, which promises to be an intense clash as both teams are tied on points. GAM and CES will face off beforehand, so whoever wins will make a strong push towards the top spot on the leaderboard.
A significant change we are seeing in Team Flash right now is that Kati in the mid lane is rapidly improving in skill and promises to become a mainstay for carrying the team rather than just supporting team fights as before. Just look at how Kati plays Ryze, carrying the team when Slayder isn’t too far ahead, and you can understand the progress of this young talent.
If Team Flash has Kati, Team Secret also possesses Coated, who has been performing exceptionally well lately. Gone are the days of relying solely on Artifact or Celebrity, as Coated has become bolder with damage-dealing champions and carrying the team with picks like Renekton, Kayle, or Jax. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that the success or failure of Team Flash and Team Secret in the upcoming match will depend on these two rising young stars.