Ryan Goodrich
This is something of an upset victory for the previous world championship team FunPlus Phoenix. During the Spring Playoffs of the League of Legends Pro League, China’s official League of Legends competition, things took a rather unexpected turn today. Tournament favorite and reigning world champion FunPlus Phoenix was expected to win in the matchup against JD Gaming. But things went anywhere but in their favor, with JDG beating FPX soundly in a 3-0 defeat.
Match in summary
The series of three games between JD Gaming and FunPlus Phoenix ended up progressing quite slowly. This is rather uncharacteristic of the traditional aggressive playstyle common to LPL teams. All three games lasted longer than 35 minutes. The first and second game went so far as to reach the 40-minute mark.
Each game proved a non-stop game of tug of war. But it was quite clear early on that JD Gaming had a much more polished game than FPX. The world champions looked unorganized at times, and out of sync during many of the team fights. Occasionally, a member of FPX stood out, but JDG’s overall team effort dominated the match.
For a highlight of all three games, check out the video below. This shows some of the top plays, team fights, and standout moments throughout all three games.
Upcoming final match
JD Gaming, who finished second place at the end of the LPL Spring Split season, will now move on to face Top Esports. This is the grand final of the Spring Playoff and takes place on Saturday.
Teams do not have the Mid-Season Intivational (MSI) to look forward to this year due to the Coronavirus pandemic. Still, the LPL rewards teams in the Playoffs with championship points. These ultimately count toward qualification for the 2020 League of Legends World Championship.
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