TS vs RRQ
Map 1: Lotus (TS’s Map Choice)
Score: 13-9 (TS Wins)
Match Rating: 2/10
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Match Summary
This map was far from enjoyable to watch. It felt like TS and RRQ embodied a sort of yin and yang dynamic with their respective strengths and weaknesses:
- RRQ: Showed a solid understanding of their utility setups and synergies. However, they lacked confidence in executing their game plan, often struggling with timings and spacing, which ultimately hurt their overall performance.
- TS: Displayed inefficient utility setups and a lack of macro-level understanding, leading to poor synergy. Despite this, they compensated with superior mechanical skill and individual confidence, consistently outskilling RRQ players in key engagements.
Both teams were guilty of overpeeking, even when holding a numbers advantage, which led to unnecessary round losses.
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Key Moments & Issues
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Round 20: A prime example of TS's teamwork issues occurred during this round. TS used a powerful Fade ultimate for a retake but failed to capitalize on it for almost the entirety of its duration. This failure highlights two possible underlying problems:
- Communication Issues: Easier to address and fix with practice.
- Macro Planning Deficiencies: A larger structural problem that requires significant effort to resolve.
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Vyse on Defense: Both teams misused Vyse in a defensive role. Instead of leveraging her as an isolation agent during executes, she was played like an inferior version of Killjoy. Her utility—vines and wall—was rarely utilized effectively, leaving her impact on the game minimal.
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Final Thoughts
The match exposed glaring issues in both teams' playstyles:
- TS: Needs to improve macro understanding and better utilize utility during coordinated plays.
- RRQ: Must build confidence in their execution to complement their strong utility setups.
Hopefully, these issues will be addressed in the next map, allowing for more polished and competitive gameplay.
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Map 2: Pearl (RRQ’s Map Choice)
Score: 4-13 (RRQ Wins)
Match Rating: 4/10
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Match Summary
The Good
RRQ came into Pearl with a clear understanding of their composition’s strengths and executed their game plan confidently— a stark contrast from their performance on Lotus.
- Monyet’s Decision-Making: Apart from a few missteps (notably in the pistol round), Monyet showcased smart utility and ultimate usage. For example, RRQ effectively took early A Elbow control on attack, secured the orb for Phoenix, and followed it up with Phoenix planting and using his ultimate to create secondary pressure during the post-plant.
- Macro Decisions: RRQ demonstrated solid macro-level planning in 5v5 post-plants, employing counter-pressure by pushing lanes. While some of these decisions backfired, it’s encouraging to see a team stick to a plan and commit, even when the outcome isn’t ideal. This structured approach showed marked improvement in RRQ’s confidence and decision-making compared to their previous map.
The Bad
TS, on the other hand, continued to struggle with fundamental issues, failing to learn from their mistakes in Lotus and previous matches.
- Overpeeking Problems Persist: TS repeatedly gave up unnecessary advantages by overpeeking, particularly in post-plant scenarios.
- Critical 3v1 Post-Plant (Estrella’s Clutch): This round encapsulated TS’s biggest problem.
- The minimap positioning of TS players was abysmal. I was able to call the clutch happen just by seeing the positionions on the minimap, before kills happened.
- JessieVash’s poor angle isolation allowed Estrella the one opportunity to create a win condition. Estrella systematically isolated the 1v1 fights, forcing TS’s remaining two players into similar isolated duels, resulting in a brilliant clutch for RRQ.
- This round highlighted a fundamental issue with not just TS but many VCT teams: a lack of practice in basic concepts like spacing, playing the numbers, and identifying win/loss conditions.
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Final Thoughts
RRQ’s structured and confident performance on Pearl was a significant improvement, showcasing strong planning and better utilization of their composition’s strengths. While some decisions didn’t pay off, their commitment to a coherent strategy was commendable.
For TS, the 3v1 clutch loss to Estrella symbolizes the broader issues plaguing their playstyle. Teams at this level must master the basics—spacing, playing with an advantage, and maintaining discipline in post-plant scenarios—to avoid throwing away rounds that should be unlosable.
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Next Map: Haven
This will be a critical test for TS as they look to address their recurring issues.
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Map 3: Haven (RRQ’s Map Choice)
Score: 4-13 (RRQ Wins)
Match Rating: ★★★★☆☆☆☆☆☆ (4/10)
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Match Summary
RRQ’s Performance
RRQ carried over the strengths they displayed on Pearl, showcasing a solid understanding of their win conditions in post-plant situations. A notable strength was their decision to aggressively peek into defenders during retake scenarios. This tactic effectively delayed TS’s retakes or outright stopped them before they could gain momentum. TS was repeatedly caught off guard by RRQ's proactive approach.
- Early Domination: RRQ started the map strong, leading 6-0, with clean utility usage and disciplined follow-ups.
- Mid-Game Complacency: After gaining a significant lead, RRQ became slightly complacent, occasionally losing rounds due to dry peeks that weren’t supported by utility. However, these mistakes were minor and didn’t impact the overall outcome of the match.
- Adjustments: RRQ quickly tightened their spacing after recognizing these errors, showing adaptability and discipline as the game progressed.
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TS’s Struggles
TS’s recurring issues were glaringly apparent on Haven, further exposing the flaws in their gameplay across all maps in the series.
- Utility on Autopilot: TS’s utility usage lacked intentionality. Many flashes from Breach provided no value as RRQ often played ahead of them.
- Retake Problems:
- The Killjoy retake ultimate was completely neutralized as RRQ held their ground on-site and punished TS players, who ran into them without proper coordination.
- TS’s inability to adapt to RRQ’s playstyle made them look disjointed and reactive rather than proactive.
- Fundamentals Missing: It was clear that TS’s gameplay lacked attention to basic fundamentals, such as reading how utility impacts opponents, spacing, and adapting to the flow of the match.
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Final Thoughts
RRQ’s decisive victory highlighted their growth and adaptability throughout the series. Their proactive approach and strong understanding of macro play were key factors in their success. While occasional mistakes crept into their game, they were minor and didn’t detract from their overall dominance on Haven.
For TS, this series exposed significant weaknesses in their fundamentals. Their inability to utilize utility effectively, adapt to the opponents’ playstyle, or capitalize on key opportunities was a recurring theme. Moving forward, TS will need to go back to the drawing board and spend the next two months focusing on the basics if they hope to improve in Split 1. Clean and disciplined VALORANT is something all fans hope to see from them.
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GG! Next Match: GE vs DFM
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