Duane “Kelra” Pillas showcased his skills as one of the best gold laners in the world, guiding Onic Philippines to a remarkable 3-1 comeback victory over Team Spirit in the Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Mid-Season Cup quarterfinals on Thursday in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Kelra, the MSC Finals MVP during Execration’s title run in 2021, played a crucial role in Games 3 and 4, helping Onic secure a spot in the semifinals. This victory made Onic the second Philippine team to reach the Top Four, joining Team Liquid.
“At this level of competition, I just revel in that, the termination of both games. I’m quite happy that we have that result, a bit sad for Team Spirit as we all know they’re a very strong team,” said Onic head coach Tony “Ynot” Senedrin. “But, yeah, as a coach you need to keep your composure. We need to look forward to the next game. But yeah, that was insane [game].”
Team Spirit demonstrated their drafting prowess in Game 1, taking an early lead with KidBomba’s Gloo and SAWO’s Khufra making it difficult for Onic jungler Cyric “K1NGKONG” Perez’s Fanny. The Russian team sealed the series opener in under 14 minutes with a 13-2 kill spread, highlighted by Oneshot’s flawless 8/0/3 KDA on Yi Sun-shin.
Onic bounced back in Game 2, with Kelra picking Wanwan and contributing nine kills and five assists to level the series. The intense Game 3 saw Team Spirit seize a chance to take the Lord objective after eliminating three Onic players. However, they opted to push the top lane, allowing Onic to turn the tide with Kelra on Granger, who led the defense and secured a 29-minute victory.
In Game 4, Team Spirit appeared poised to force a Game 5 after destroying most of Onic’s turrets. Yet, Onic mounted a strong defensive stand and regained momentum, culminating in a Maniac performance from Kelra on Granger that wiped out Team Spirit and clinched the thrilling comeback win.
Onic will face defending MSC champion SRG of Malaysia later at 5 p.m., with the winner advancing to the grand finals against either Team Liquid or Onic Indonesia.