RNG pick up first Worlds 2021 win over PSG Talon

In a rematch of the MSI 2021 semifinals, the LPL’s Royal Never Give Up took down the PCS’ PSG Talon in a close bout today at Worlds, where they took the early lead off the back of Xiaohu’s 3/1/9 scoreline on. RNG stuck to their tried and true method of getting Xiaohu ahead while being suffocating across the rest of the map, getting two-vs-two kills and finding plays.

As the first seed from China, the defending MSI champions are looking to take home the international crown for a second time in a row this year at the League of Legend World Championship. PSG Talon, on the other hand, want to show why they’re on many pundits’ dark horse list for the tournament.

Today’s match started with an early two-vs-two kill from RNG’s bottom lane onto PSG’s Unified, giving them an early gold lead. That early gold lead only ballooned from there. RNG continued their patented early-game aggression with a Xiaohu solo kill, a three-man dive onto PSG’s River in the top lane, and a solo kill from Gala onto Unified.

All seemed lost for the PCS’ top seed until they showed some signs of life around the 11-minute mark, thwarting RNG’s second top lane play to get two kills. But even with this, RNG continued to dominate.

PSG managed to turn the game into a tit-for-tat after punishing an overstep from RNG in the bottom lane that netted them a clean ace and four kills for Maple’s Tryndamere. But even with that play, RNG still managed to stick to their game plan to secure their first Worlds 2021 win.

RNG will look to continue their started momentum when they face off against Europe’s Fnatic on Oct. 12.