We’re down to our two finalists, DAMWON (DWG) and Edward Gaming (EDG). Both sides made it to the Grand Final after winning 3-2 in the Semi-Final, however, they come into it with different expectations. It’s clear that DWG is the favourites, and the win over T1 was considered by many to be the Grand Final before the Grand Final. EDG has snuck under the radar for most people, considered a contender for Worlds, but never a favourite. With FunPlus Phoenix out in the Group Stage, EDG stepped up to the plate.
DAMWON (DWG)
It’s the match most people expected when the Knockout stage draw was made. DWG came into Worlds as one of the favourites and having only lost two matches during the entire event, it’s no surprise. DWG has looked like a force to be reckoned with, and despite T1 taking them to a full five-game series, DWG looked in control.
Tow champions stand out for DWG as picks they might bring out. In the mid lane, Le Blanc was a popular pick for Showmaker, while in the bot lane, Ghost played Jihn in a number of games in the series. The champion pool isn’t a huge issue for DWG anyway, and it will most likely be down to EDG to take the initiative and win the series from a position of strength, rather than relying on DWG to run out of viable champions. DWG will look to force the issue but will be just as happy sitting back and burning down EDG. That’s the problem teams have had with them, if you give them a lead they can just starve you out of the game. If you keep the game even, they can beat you in the long game.
Edward Gaming (EDG)
EDG will be in for a tough test, while they beat Gen.G in the Semi-Final, it wasn’t as easy as many expected. Going the full 5-games, it was a series that hung in the balance. EDG will know they’re not expected to win this, DWG is far and away from the favourite, but EDG have win conditions, and it’s down to them to execute them.
On paper, EDG can win the series, they’ve got a high enough skill ceiling that they could take down DWG, however, they had relied on certain champions to win. Jungler “JieJie” played Jarven in all five of the matches in the series against Gen.G. While he has played other champions through Worlds, it’s undoubtedly a comfort pick for him and his team, something DWG could exploit.
Odds would indicate the above as being correct. DWG are currently 5/18 to win the series, compared to EDG 5/2. Recent history might imply that this is going to be an easy 3-0 victory for DWG and odds on that are also fairly good, and a number of recent Worlds Grand Finals have also been fairly one-sided. For me, DWG is favourites for a reason, and I’d back them to win it. I’d even go as far as to say this is a 3-0 to DWG, as I just don’t think EDG has shown enough at Worlds to make me think they can win it all.
