G2 Esports vs Suning Gaming

This is where things get a whole lot more interesting: a clash between the most accomplished and talented LEC team in history, and the third seed from China. Fireworks are all but guaranteed! Both teams have a solid grasp on the meta and have been pretty darn dominant throughout the year. Still, they were far from perfect, even though G2 *did* eventually pick up the pace as the season came to an end.

The reason why everyone's dying to see these two teams clash is not only because they're exciting and prone to skirmishing, but also because there's a fair bit of uncertainty involved. G2 Esports is a known quantity, and we all know they're bound to leave a mark at this year's World Championship. On the other hand, they weren't exactly consistent throughout the year and they struggled mightily (for a wide variety of reasons) at the most random of times. It wasn't tied to their opponents either -- G2 was often its biggest adversary. They underperformed, their drafts left a lot to be desired, and their cohesion regressed even though there wasn't a good reason for such a thing to happen. Granted, they did outclass Fnatic when it mattered the most, but seeing them so vulnerable isn't a sight anyone expected.

Now, the margin for error has shrunk even further. They're not up against the likes of Rogue, MAD Lions, or SK Gaming, but rather against the best teams the world of competitive League has to offer. As their first test, they're up against Suning -- a team no one's quite sure how high to rank. On the one hand, they hail from the absolute best region in the world, and the fact that they've finished third tells us all we need to know when it comes to their potential and sheer talent. On the other hand, two of the four LPL representatives didn't look all that great so far, which might be a reason for concern. They're under a lot of pressure given how they're competing in China; with most of them being quite inexperienced, it stands to reason that they won't play at their absolute best. They need time to warm up, and if that ends up being the case with Suning as well they're bound to get steamrolled by the LEC champions, who also happen to be one of the most experienced line-ups in Shanghai.

Overall, this game is an absolute must-watch, but making any kind of prediction with confidence is downright impossible. G2 is evidently favored and there's a good reason why that's the case, but they're like unstable matter: there are too many intangible factors that arise whenever they step foot on stage, which makes betting on/against them an absolute nightmare.

Still, if they correctly navigate the pick and ban phase and get Caps on a pick with a lot of agency, they shouldn't have too big of a problem in taking Suning down. Either way, we should be in for one heck of a ride!