As expected, when JD Gaming and Top Esports clash, the match always goes the full five-game series.
The LPL Summer 2022 finals saw both teams even in gold for the most part of game one, but when late game hit, Wang “Hope” Jie’s Zeri had out-scaled Yu “JackeyLove” Wen-Bo’s Lucian. Seo “Kanavi” Jin-hyeok’s Wukong, one of his best champions, was also leading the pack with six kills.
TES fought back in game two, wrestling the early lead. With Hextech Soul, they outplayed JDG at Baron at the 47-minute mark to even out the series.
Zeng “Yagao” Qi’s Ahri and Lou “Missing” Yun-Feng’s Renta Glasc were the highlights of game three, who performed outstandingly in team fights.
JackeyLove’s time to shine on Zeri came during game four, supported by Gao “Tian” Tian-Liang’s Trundle, one of his staples. Huang “Wayward” Ren-Xing’s Gnar had also kept his opposing top laner Bai “369” Jia-Hao in check.
As if in a time loop, both teams dived back into Silver Scrapes, delivering one of the best games League of Legends fans could hope to watch.
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JD Gaming outmaneuvered Top Esports to win the LPL Summer 2022 finals
With the championship and Worlds 2022 seeding on the line, game five was understandably more muted than the first four. Both sides were conservative, taking less risks from early to mid-game, largely due to their drafts which saw all champions preferring to scale.
AD carries Hope and JackeyLove were on Sivir and Zeri, while the mid laners Yagao and Zhuo “knight” Ding played Azir and Viktor. In the jungle, Kanavi surprised by locking in Bel’Veth against Tian’s Trundle, a high-skill champion that he has played the most within major regions.
At 34 minutes, both teams were tied in dragons and towers downed. JDG led by more than 3,000 gold, while Top Esports had more kills. Hextech Dragon was about to spawn in 30 seconds, the fifth this game, and both teams positioned themselves in mid.
However, JDG had a wave advantage. They pushed with their minions while TES positioned themselves in Fog of War and attempted to catch them out should they walk through the jungle.
JDG wasn’t going to fall for their trap, however. Instead, they followed their minion wave all the way to TES’ base turret and inhibitor, which was completely open.
TES then tried to get a jump on them from behind, but the team wasn’t on the same page. Wayward’s Sejuani had teleported back to base and needed time to walk over. As JackeyLove swooped in, Ling “Mark” Xu’s Nautilus was walking in the opposite direction. By the time he engaged, it was too late — his AD carry was dead.
JD Gaming’s shrewd marco decision-making when they moved as a unit with their minions, combined with better positioning, earned them the game five victory and the LPL Summer 2022 championship.
Finishing the series with a 4.4 (16/12/37) combined KDA, Yagao was awarded the FMVP.
This championship title is JD Gaming’s second after LPL Spring 2021, when head coach Yoon “Homme” Sung-young was also at the helm. They’ve also secured first seed at the Worlds 2022 Group Stage while Top Esports settles for second.
LPL’s third and fourth seed teams will be determined in the LPL Regional Qualifiers 2022, broadcasted live on Twitch and YouTube starting September 2, 2022.
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