MPL Philippines Season 9

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MPL Philippines Season 9
2022
Tournament information
GameMobile Legends: Bang Bang
LocationPhilippines
DatesFebruary 18, 2022–May 1, 2022
AdministratorMoonton
Tournament
format(s)
Round-robin tournament - Regular Season
Venue(s)SMX Convention Center, Pasay City (Playoffs)
Teams8
Purse$150,000 USD
Final positions
ChampionsRSG Philippines
1st runners-upSmart Omega
2nd runners-upTNC Pro Team - ML
Tournament statistics
Regular Season MVPDylan "Light" Catipon
Finals MVPNathanael "Nathzz" Estrologo

The MPL Philippines Season 9 is the ninth season of the Mobile Legends Professional League (MPL) of the Philippines. The season began on February 18, 2022, with all teams from last season participating once again. With the 2021+1 Southeast Asian Games being held in May, the conclusion of the season's playoffs were held last May 1, 2022 to give way for Team Sibol's participation in the biennial meet.[1]

After a nearly perfect playoff run with 10-1 win-loss record, RSG Philippines have secured their first MPL Championship after defeating Smart Omega in five games in the best-of-seven grand finals, with Nathanael "Nathzz" Estrologo winning the Finals MVP award. This would become RSG Philippines' first championship title after its establishment in MPL PH S8.[2]

Venues and Competition Format[edit]

According to the organizing committee of the league, they have been looking to stage the entire regular season in an offline format but with no live audience in the meantime, due to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis.[3]

Last February 11, the league has received an approval from the Games and Amusements Board (GAB) to conduct an offline setting (LAN event) of the season starting Week 5 of the Regular Season.[4] However in an update from February 14, instead of the originally scheduled Week 5, the MPL will begin its offline format of the tournament starting Week 3 of the Regular Season, which began on March 4, two weeks earlier than the original date. The season will be still played with no live audience and the access on MPL Arena are restricted to only players, casters, and staff for safety purposes, but the games are still to be livestreamed on the official social media platforms via Facebook Gaming, YouTube, and on TikTok.[5]

Roster Changes[edit]

Blacklist International[edit]

  • Two-time MPL-PH champions and M3 World Champions Johnmar "OhMyV33NUS" Villaluna and Danerie James "Wise" Del Rosario will not be playing for this season, owing to their 'much-needed break'. The duo of Blacklist International has steered the Blacklist team to three championships and two first runner-up finishes in 2021 MLBB season in which two championships came from the wins of MPL Season 7 and Season 8, and the third came from the MLBB M3 World Championship, in which they have swept the Grand Finals against compatriot ONIC Philippines, 4 games to 0, to secure the back-to-back world championships for the Philippines.[6]

Bren Esports[edit]

  • CJ "Ribo" Ribo, will not be playing for this season, as announced in his Facebook account that he will rest for the said season. Ribo has won several MLBB tournaments in both local and international levels, including a gold medal which he won during the MLBB tournament of the 2019 Southeast Asian Games representing Team Philippines.[7]

ECHO Philippines[edit]

  • The team unveiled its roster for this season last December 21, 2021, featuring some of what is considered by many as a 'super team' in key acquisitions of M2 World Champion and Finals MVP Karl Gabriel 'KarlTzy' Nepomuceno which he departed from his former team in Bren Esports, along with former member of Nexplay EVOS Tristan "Yawi" Cabrera and former EXP laner of TNC Pro Team, Frediemar '3MarTzy' Serafico. Also returning for the team is Ashley Marco "Killuash" Cruz, who took a break from the competitive scene last season.[8]
  • The team also retained the services of holdovers from last season in Christian "Rafflesia" Fajura, Jaymark "Hadess" Lazaro, Jankurt "KurtTzy" Matira, Aaron "AaronQT" Lim, Benedict "BennyQT" Gonzales, and Rion "RK3" Kudo.[8]

Nexplay EVOS[edit]

  • With the sudden departure of Tristan "YAWI" Cabrera, Nexplay EVOS' named "Big Three" in Cabrera, John Paul "H2WO" Salonga and Renejay "RENEJAY" Barcarse, has ended after being formed in Season 6.[9] Nexplay would retain the services for Salonga, Barcarse, Jeniel Bata "YELLYHAZE" Anon and Jhonwin Dela Merced "HESA" Vergara and the additions of rookies in Mariusz Villamero "DONUT" Tan, Rainiel Jhim Agustin "URESHIII" Logronio, the addition of Veteran player Jeff Lenjesson "S4gitnu" Subang, Kenneth Palejo "CADENZA" Castro, Michael Medrocillo "MP the King" Endino and Emmanuel Cervantes "Elpizo" Candelaria.[10][11]

Smart Omega[edit]

  • After getting eliminated from the Grand Finals contention in the Lower-bracket Finals against Blacklist International,[12] Smart Omega had finished third, failing to secure a spot for the MLBB M3 World Championship. Smart Omega would retain its roster, but with the addition of Jhonville Borres "OUTPLAYED!" Villar and Cesar Jefferson "Amethyst" Santos.[13]

ONIC Philippines[edit]

  • Despite finishing as runner-up for the MLBB M3 World Championships in the hands of Blacklist International, ONIC Philippines would keep and maintain its roster from MPL Philippines Season 8.[14]

RSG Philippines[edit]

  • Being a new team in MPL Philippines Season 8, RSG Philippines would be eliminated early in the play-in tournament against Smart Omega. RSG Philippines would keep its MPL Philippines Season 8 roster intact but would make significant changes with the additions of Dylan Aaron "Light" Catipon and Clarense Jay "Kousei" Camilo, players from TNC Pro Team - ML. However, Joshwell Christian "Iy4knu" Manaoag had previously announced that he will be taking a break from the professional scene.[15]

TNC Pro Team[edit]

  • After a disappointing finish on MPL Philippines Season 8, TNC Pro Team would begin a rebuild process after the departure of Dylan Aaron "Light" Catipon and Clarense Jay "Kousei" Camilo to RSG Philippines, Patrick "P-GOD" Grecia,[16] Frediemar "3MarTzy" Serafico[17] to ECHO Philippines, Douglas Joseph "ImbaDeejay" Astibe II,[16] Landher "Der" San Gabriel,[17] Adrian "Toshi." Bacallo[17] as a break from the professional scene, and its coach John Laurence "Lift" Ruiz, TNC Pro Team had just released most of its roster.
  • TNC Pro Team would keep the service of Ben Seloe Dizon "Benthings" Maglaque and Shemaiah Daniel "Chuuu" Chu (Now SDZYZ) and adding four new players in Jomarie "Escalera" Delos Santos, Mark Genzon Sojero "Kramm" Rusiana, Robee Bryan "Yasuwo" Promocille and Salman "KingSalman" Macarambon to form its MPL Philippines Season 9 roster.[18]

Regular season[edit]

The regular season began on February 18, 2022, and ended on April 10, 2022. The regular season were a double round-robin format, with each team playing against their opponents twice, for a total of 14 games being played per team. A total of three group stage points may be earned in a single regular season match, based on the following:[19]

  • If the match is decided by a 2–0 score, the winner shall earn 3 group stage points, while the loser earns 0 group stage points.
  • If the match is decided by a 2–1 score, the winner shall earn 2 group stage points, while the loser earns 1 group stage point.

The top two teams of the standings gained outright qualification to the Upper Bracket Semifinals, while the next four teams qualified for the play-ins.[19] With the new playoff rule being introduced this season, the first-placed and third-placed teams shall decide the match-ups for the play-ins.[20]

Pos Team Pld W L MF MA MD Pts Qualification
1 q – RSG Philippines 14 11 3 23 9 +14 31 Upper-Bracket Teams for the Playoffs
2 q – TNC Pro Team - ML 14 9 5 21 13 +8 27
3 q – ECHO Philippines [1] 14 8 6 19 13 +6 26 Qualified for the Play-in Tournament
4 q – Nexplay EVOS [2] 14 6 8 15 18 −3 19[a]
5 q – ONIC Philippines 14 8 6 18 19 −1 19[a]
6 q – Smart Omega 14 6 8 16 20 −4 18
7 e – Blacklist International 14 3 11 13 24 −11 14 Eliminated from the Playoffs
8 e – Bren Esports 14 5 9 11 20 −9 14
Source: MPL Philippines official website
Rules for classification: Head-to-head record, amount of winning games, match length of victories, tiebreaker game
e – Eliminated; q – Qualified for the phase indicated
Notes:
  1. ^ a b 1–1 at regular season series, Games won head-to-head: NXPE 3–2 Onic PH

Notes[edit]

1.^ Due to the absence of Nexplay EVOS during Week 4 Day 3, Nexplay was ultimately disqualified, prescribed by the MPL-Philippines rule book (7.3.4.2.8)[21] and provided ECHO Philippines, Nexplay EVOS' supposed challenger, was given the win, by default.

Playoffs[edit]

For this season, the league has announced a new format for the season. While six teams are still to contend for the playoffs, the top two teams after the regular season will still get an outright Upper Bracket Semifinal slots, however, the matchups for the play-in rounds will be decided by the first and third-seeded teams.[20]

Similar to last season, all matches will still follow a best-of-five format except for the Grand Finals, which will be a best-of-seven series.

MPL Philippines Season 9 will be played and shown at SM Cinemas. Announced during Week 8, Day 3.[22]

On 12 April 2022, the seeding of the teams in the play-ins was announced with the Playoffs to begin on 28 April.[23][24]

On April 28, it was then revealed that all of the playoff games were held inside the SMX Convention Center, Pasay City, with limited audience witnessing the games inside the venue.[25]

Bracket[edit]

 
Play-ins
April 28, 2022		Bracket Semifinals
April 29–30, 2022		Bracket Finals
April 30–May 1, 2022		Grand Finals
May 1, 2022
 
              
 
 
 
 
Upper Bracket
 
 
TNC Pro Team - ML3
 
 
 
Smart Omega1
 
ECHO Philippines0
 
Upper Bracket
 
Smart Omega3
 
TNC Pro Team - ML0
 
 
RSG Philippines3
 
 
Upper Bracket
 
 
RSG Philippines3
 
 
 
ONIC Philippines0
 
Nexplay EVOS2
 
 
 
ONIC Philippines3
 
RSG Philippines4
 
 
Smart Omega1
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Lower Bracket
 
 
Smart Omega3
 
 
TNC Pro Team - ML0
 
 
Lower Bracket
 
 
Smart Omega3
 
 
ONIC Philippines0
 
 
 
 

Play-ins[edit]

Play-ins are a best-of-5 format, winner advances to the Upper Bracket Semifinals while the losers are eliminated.

Team 1 Series Team 2 Game 1 Game 2 Game 3 Game 4 Game 5
0–3 Smart Omega OMG OMG OMG
2–3 ONIC Philippines ONIC NXP ONIC NXP ONIC

Upper Bracket Semifinals[edit]

Date: April 29, 2022

Team 1 Series Team 2 Game 1 Game 2 Game 3 Game 4 Game 5
3–0 ONIC Philippines RSG RSG RSG
3–1 Smart Omega TNC OMG TNC TNC

Lower Bracket Semifinals[edit]

Date: April 30, 2022

Team 1 Series Team 2 Game 1 Game 2 Game 3 Game 4 Game 5
Smart Omega
 		3–0 ONIC Philippines OMG OMG OMG

Upper Bracket Finals[edit]

Date: April 30, 2022

Team 1 Series Team 2 Game 1 Game 2 Game 3 Game 4 Game 5
TNC Pro Team - ML
 0–3 RSG Philippines RSG RSG RSG

Lower Bracket Finals[edit]

Date: May 1, 2022
Venue: SMX Convention Center, Pasay City

Team 1 Series Team 2 Game 1 Game 2 Game 3 Game 4 Game 5
TNC Pro Team - ML
 0–3 Smart Omega OMG OMG OMG

Grand Finals[edit]

Grand Finalists will represent the Philippines on MSC 2022, and will be a best-of-seven championship series.
Date & Time: May 1, 2022 – 7:00 pm

RSG Philippines will be the first team to represent the Philippines in MSC 2022 after defeating TNC Pro Team - ML in 3 games during the Upper-Bracket Finals. Defending MSC Champions Smart Omega defeated TNC Pro Team in the Lower-Bracket Finals, appearing in their second Grand Finals since MPL PH Season 6.

Venue: SMX Convention Center, Pasay City

Team 1 Series Team 2 Game 1 Game 2 Game 3 Game 4 Game 5 Game 6 Game 7
(#1) RSG Philippines
 		4–1 Smart Omega RSG OMG RSG RSG RSG

Awards[edit]

Regular Season Weekly MVPs[edit]

Every Week, a player from the teams that had faced off during one week of the season is awarded as the Regular Season's Weekly MVP. This tradition has been part of the achievements sections of MPL Philippines since Season 7.[26]

Week Player Team
1 SDZYZ[26] TNC Pro Team (1)
2 EMANN[26] RSG Philippines (1)
3 KurtTzy[26] ECHO Philippines
4 Hatred[26] ONIC Philippines
5 Joy Boy[26] Bren Esports
6 Escalera[26] TNC Pro Team (2)
7 Light[26] RSG Philippines (2)
8 E2MAX[26] Omega Esports

Individual awards[edit]

Award Player Name Team
Regular Season MVP[26] Light RSG Philippines
Finals MVP[26] Nathzz
Rookie of the Season[26] Escalera TNC Pro Team

Team of the Season[edit]

Name Position Team
Kelra[26] Gold Lane Smart Omega
Nathzz[26] EXP Lane RSG Philippines
Light[26] Roam
Demonkite[26] Jungle
Aqua[26] Mid Lane

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Pineda, Carlos (7 January 2022). "MPL-PH Season 9 will commence on February 18". Spin.ph. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
  2. ^ Pineda, Carlos. "Kingslayers earn the crown with 4-1 dismantling of Omega". Spin.ph. Retrieved 1 May 2022.
  3. ^ Micaller, Bea (7 January 2022). "MPL PH looking to hold games offline in S9, but no live audience for now". GMA News Online. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
  4. ^ Magallon, Reynald (11 February 2022). "MPL Philippines gets green light to hold offline matches". Manila Bulletin. Retrieved 27 February 2022.
  5. ^ Magallon, Reynald (14 February 2022). "MPL PH S9 offline games moved to earlier date". Manila Bulletin. Retrieved 27 February 2022.
  6. ^ Coloma, Angela (9 January 2022). "Blacklist duo V33wise to skip MPL Season 9". ABS-CBN News. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
  7. ^ Magallon, Reynald (3 January 2022). "Ribo out in S9 as MLBB 'GOAT' takes break from pro scene". Manila Bulletin. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
  8. ^ a b Magallon, Reynald (21 December 2021). "ECHO forms strong team for MPL PH Season 9". Manila Bulletin. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  9. ^ Marquez, CJ (December 7, 2021). "Nexplay's Big 3 era ends as Yawi leaves team". CNN Philippines. Archived from the original on December 7, 2021.
  10. ^ Vistek. "Nexplay EVOS - Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Professional League Philippines". MPL Philippines Season 9. Retrieved 2022-04-09.
  11. ^ Dannug, Jonash (2022-01-15). "Nexplay loads up with amateur standouts as Dogie returns as coach". Tiebreaker Times. Retrieved 2022-06-05.
  12. ^ "Blacklist exacts revenge on Omega, sets up title clash vs Onic". RAPPLER. 2021-10-24. Retrieved 2022-04-09.
  13. ^ Rossel, John Dave. "Omega Esports Completes MPL PH Season 9 Roster With Two New Players". AFK Gaming. Retrieved 2022-04-09.
  14. ^ News, BEA MICALLER, GMA. "Onic PH announces intact roster for Season 9 as hunt for MPL title continues". GMA News Online. Retrieved 2022-04-09. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  15. ^ "Light, Kousei Move to RSG PH; Iyaknu to Take a Break". HYPRGAME. 2022-01-11. Retrieved 2022-06-05.
  16. ^ a b Dannug, Jonash (2021-11-08). "TNC parts ways with ImbaDeejay, P-GOD, Light". Tiebreaker Times. Retrieved 2022-06-05.
  17. ^ a b c "Toshi, 3MarTzy, and Der leave TNC Pro Team ML". Spin.ph. Retrieved 2022-06-05.
  18. ^ BossJam. "TNC unveils MPL S9 roster". Daily Tribune. Retrieved 2022-06-05.
  19. ^ a b "Rules of Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Professional League (Philippines)". MPL. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  20. ^ a b Elona, Jules (24 January 2022). "MPL PH Season 9 announces a surprising new playoffs rule | ONE Esports". One Esports. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  21. ^ MPL Philippines. "Match Process of MPL-PH". ph-mpl.com.
  22. ^ "MPL PH S9 playoffs to be shown in SM Cinemas". Manila Bulletin. 2022-04-14. Retrieved 2022-06-05.
  23. ^ News, BEA MICALLER, GMA. "Echo-Omega clash kicks off MPL PH Season 9 playoff schedule". GMA News Online. Retrieved 2022-06-05. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  24. ^ Dannug, Jonash (2022-04-12). "RSG, ECHO make picks for MPL PH 9 brackets". Tiebreaker Times. Retrieved 2022-06-05.
  25. ^ Pineda, Carlos (28 April 2022). "Coach Yeb on MPL-PH playoff viewership: 'Dapat hindi nila nili-limit'". Spin.ph. Retrieved 1 May 2022.
  26. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Vistek. "Achievements - Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Professional League Philippines". MPL Philippines Season 9. Retrieved 2022-02-21.
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