Perhaps in even their wildest dreams, Invictus Gaming fans could not have imagined that their beloved team would find itself in such a dire predicament. Still featuring the roster that has played together for years (only missing Ning), with Baolan occasionally coming in from the bench, the key pillars TheShy and Rookie remain, yet IG currently sits at 13th place in the LPL Summer standings with just 3 wins and 7 losses.
Many IG fans had hoped that once TheShy completed his quarantine and returned, IG would perform significantly better. However, on the day this top laner made his comeback, they lost to Royal Never Give Up 2-0 and most recently to JD Gaming by the same scoreline. If JDG is ranked at the top, RNG is directly competing with IG for a playoff spot, sitting just above them on the standings.
With the LPL Summer entering the second round, IG has only 6 matches left to squeeze through a narrow gap and secure a playoff spot. Their upcoming opponents include Victory Five, Top Esports, Bilibili Gaming, Team WE, Rare Atom, and ThunderTalk Gaming. Among these, only V5 and TT are ranked below IG, while the other four are all in the top 10.
The loss to JDG has made IG’s path even more difficult, and the Worlds qualification is slipping further away from TheShy, Rookie, and their teammates. Of course, in addition to winning all 6 remaining matches, IG must also hope that their rivals stumble along the way.
On the other hand, not only are they losing the chance to compete for titles, but if they fail this season, IG will face a massive “bleeding” of talent, as Rookie has hinted at retiring from professional gaming after a long and exhausting career. Meanwhile, TheShy has also stated that he will only play if Rookie is on the team; otherwise, he too will retire.
Now or never, IG has placed themselves in a perilous situation and they must find a way to overcome it. However, after being completely dominated by JDG, not many fans are genuinely expecting the IG players to pull off a miracle, even if it means lucking into a playoff spot.
Clearly, the motivation to compete is something that many do not see in IG; in the context of TheShy being heavily camped in the top lane, this team has shown almost no response to their opponents. The champions of 2018 are now just a memory.
