Day 3 of the Swiss Stage in Worlds 2023 announces two of the first qualifying teams for the Knockout Stage! Here is how the fights to qualify with a perfect 3-0 record went.

JDG vs LNG

Game 1 - The Ultimate Defense

JDG vs LNG Draft

Beijing JDG Intel Esports Club took over game 1 after a close match versus Suzhou LNG Esports. In the draft phase, LNG decided to draft high dive potential which means they are going to put a lot of pressure on Park "Ruler" Jae-Hyuk and Ding "knight" Zhuo and try to kill them. JDG's response to this was to draft good peel for their carries. With Vi and K'Sante having high disruption and Lulu with shields and her Wild Growth, the fights for LNG highly depended on outplaying JDG.

Unfortunately for LNG, JDG gained an early lead which led to Orianna building Crown of the Shattered Queen. This was built way before LNG's members could buy enough damage items to burst through her. After an excellent call by JDG to take Baron, JDG won the final team fight and ruined LNG's base. JDG destroyed LNG's Nexus with a gold lead of 9.8k at a game time of 27:38 minutes.

Game 2 - Mistakes were made

JDG vs LNG Draft

LNG dominated JDG after JDG made many misplays and few outplays. Game 2 turned out to be a much slower paced game. JDG were not too aggressive in the early game. However, in a fight for dragon, there was a close fight that allowed little to no mistakes. knight ended up flashing in during the fight which was a mistake as LNG immediately reacted to it and killed him. After that, the fight and consequently, the game, ended in LNG's favor. LNG won game 2 with a gold lead of 13k at a game time of 28:30 minutes.

Game 3 - World Ending Performance

JDG vs LNG Draft

JDG close out the series with a overwhelming victory versus LNG. They performed outstandingly in the final game. Jiahao "369" Bai was unkillable for almost all of the team fights and soaked up tons of damage from LNG. knight and Ruler also were able to confidently and consistently deal damage while remaining safe. LNG were caught out here and there throughout the game but were powerless in the face of 369's Aatrox.

In a final team fight mid lane, LNG tried their best to stop or even win the team fight and were able to collect a couple kills. Unfortunately, JDG had more fighting power and destroyed them and their base. JDG won the series with a gold lead of 8.5k at a game time of 26:35 minutes.

G2 vs GEN

Game 1 - Who Wants a Piece of the Champ

G2 vs GEN Draft

Gen.G took over game 1 with a dominating performance versus G2 Esports. G2 had a decent performance versus Gen.G but were unable to create a strong tempo lead. Jeong "Chovy" Ji-Hoon and Choi "Doran" Hyeon-Joon made incredible plays across the map. They were able to navigate each fight incredibly well and suffocated G2's playmaking. On top of this, Doran's split pushing made it very hard for G2 to roam the map as nobody on their team could contest Jax's push. Gen.G ended the game with a gold lead of 11k at a game time of 31:41 minutes.

Game 2 - Overwhelming Power

G2 vs GEN Draft

Gen.G closed out the series with a decisive victory over G2. Gen.G drafted high damage and team fight CC composition whereas G2 picked up multiple tanks with limited carry damage. Steven "Hans Sama" Liv picked up Lucian which turned out well in the laning phase as most of the trades were even or favorable for him. However, Rasmus "Caps" Winther did not have a lot of damage in the early to mid game. This meant that G2's damage relied heavily on Hans Sama. Gen.G did not have this issue and were made team fighting very difficult for G2. GEN took over the game and overwhelmed G2. They beat G2 with a gold lead of 15k at a game time of 31:56 minutes.

Congratulations to JDG and GEN for being the first to qualify to the Knockout Stage for Worlds 2023! LNG and G2 remain in the Swiss Stage with a score of 2-1. They will compete with the winners of Day 4.

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Featured Image Source: Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games