RRQ AkiraAs the fourth day at the M5 World Championship ends, we begin to sing the eliminations ring out in the Group Stage.

headline photographs courtesy of Moonton
in line image courtesy of Mobile Legends Esports

With the end of Day 4 at the M5 World Championship’s Group Stage, we already have some teams locking in their spots for the Knockout Stage, while sadly for others, their tournament is essentially over. While some teams have completed their allotment of three Group Stage series, with a low chance of still seeing tiebreakers, others will see themselves eliminated even if they were to win their final showdown.

Group A saw no real surprises, with ONIC Esports and See You Soon dominating their opening few days of Mobile Legends: Bang Bang action – and without any losses, both teams cruise through into the next round. For Triple Esports and Bigetron Sons, the same cannot be said, as they both will be summarily eliminated after the formality which is their final series against one another.

In Group B, Blacklist International has come out fighting, even after suffering a small scare against Team SMG. Sadly, for SMG, their run through the Wildcard Tournament and into the main event is met with disappointment, as they leave only HomeBois as the hopes for a Malaysian victory. For Fire Flux Esports and RRQ Akira, their next series will be pivotal in making it into the next round.

Next up, we have Group C, which seems destined for tiebreakers, after some interesting series over the past few days. Although AP.Bren started strong with a win over Burmese Ghouls, who ended up also losing to Team Flash, their win over Team Lilgun today gives them some hope for going through to the next round. Everything depends on both Flash and Lilgun, who now will both need to face Bren in the coming days – a tough challenge for anyone.

Last, but certainly not least, we look at Group D, where the North Americans of TheOhioBrothers were unable to find a series win so far – which will result in their elimination. Although they still have a series to play, HomeBois will be unlikely to fall, while Geek Fam ID holds a 2-1 lead at the top of the group currently. However, after some appalling behaviour from the team’s Jungler, Manuel “Nnael” Simbolon against Deus Vult, he has been handed a 2-match suspension – following in line with the MLBB Esports rules. 

Only two days remain of the M5 World Championship Group Stage, with December 6 and 7 leaving many teams with everything to play for if they want to push forward into the next round of action. Unfortunately, by the time we reach Thursday, only eight teams will be reaching the next round, and eight will wave their M5 title chances goodbye.