The Mobile Legends Professional League (MPL) Philippines Season 11 Playoffs finals held today, May 7, was a familiar scenario from the past. With defending MPL champion Blacklist International facing the runner-up of the last finals, Echo Philippines, the end result was, well, an echo from the past: a sweep by Echo to win the championship.
This was Blacklist and Echo’s third finals appearance against one another, with Echo now gaining the upper hand in terms of championship wins. Their first finals outing was in September last year during MPL Season 10, with Blacklist winning in four games to two.
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This was followed by the M4 World Championship in December, which is the biggest and most prestigious Mobile Legends tournament in the world. Just like in today’s grand final, Echo won with a 4-0 sweep. On this occasion, Sanford was hailed as the MVP of the series.
Today’s finals outing felt like déjà vu. This was despite Blacklist winning the upper bracket finals and gaining the first slot in the grand finals. Echo, on the other hand, lost to RSG Slate PH in the upper bracket semifinals and made its way back to the grand finals after beating Bren Esports, who was the top-seeded team from the regular season in the lower bracket, as well as RSG Slate Ph in the lower bracket finals.
Both Echo and Blacklist qualified for the upcoming Mobile Legends Southeast Asia Cup this June and will represent the Philippines.
