Onic Esports ousts Echo, denies hopes of another PHL vs PHL finals

PHNOM PENH — Onic Esports humbled the reigning M4 world champions as the Indonesian squad pulled off a 3-0 sweep against Echo to enter the Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Southeast Asia Cup (MSC) 2023 grand finals on Saturday.

Onic set up a best-of-seven championship match against another Filipino team, Blacklist International, which is slated for Sunday, June 18.

Filipino import Kairi “Kairi” Rayosdelsol proved why he’s among the best junglers in the world, unleashing five kills and two assists in Game 1 with his signature Fanny as they drew first flood.

Kairi got enough help as Butsss’ Masha took over in Game 2 with four Echo players getting killed as Benedict “Bennyqt” Gonzales could not defend the base by himself to give Onic a commanding 2-0 cushion.

But it all boiled down to a marathon Game 3, with Echo looking sharp after taking down nine turrets and securing seven lords while also getting three turtles to have the advantage in terms of objectives. But a crucial team fight in the 39th minute saw all Echo players wiped out before Onic pushed the base and completed an epic comeback win.

This is the first time since MSC 2019 that an Indonesian team eliminated a Philippine squad in the international stage. Filipino teams have played each other in the grand finals of several recent tournaments, including the M3 and M4 world championships.

—JMB, GMA Integrated News