By: Jan Marcus Montevirgen
The Fnatic ONIC Philippines and Smart Omega match-up on Saturday was a notable event since it marked the first time Duanne “Kelra” Pillas and Joshua “Ch4knu” Mangilog faced each other on opposing sides of the arena.
Last season, the opportunity for a direct clash never arose.
Ch4knu had been transferred from the MDL to MPL late in the season to help his team, Smart Omega, secure a spot in the playoffs. As a result, Kelra and Ch4knu did not meet in a head-to-head match.
In the post-match interview, Kelra expressed his excitement leading up to the game and reflected on the challenge of facing Ch4knu. Despite the sweep, he found the match-up particularly difficult.
“Excited ako sa laban namin ngayon. Dito talaga ako pinakana-excite noong nakalaban ko na si Ch4knu. First time ko lang din siya nakalaban. Last season hindi ko na siya nakalaban,” said the 19-year-old gold laner.
“Parang ang hirap niya talaga kalaban. Yung mga ginagawa namin dati noong magkasama pa kami sa may marksman, ganon ginagawa niya sa akin ngayon eh. Medyo nahirapan ako. Kaya sobrang excited ako sa magiging laban namin, kung ano ipapakita niya, kung ano yung ipapakita ko.”
(C) MPL PH
Smart Omega was hailed as one of the strongest teams this season due to their dominance in the early weeks. Kelra pointed out that Ch4knu’s maturity, both in and out of the game, has been a crucial factor in his former team’s improvement.
“Tingin ko, pinakaunang nabago niya is yung outside the game na ugali. Ayon siguro yung pinaka-key para gumanda pa yung performance niya. Kasi yung mga nakaraang season na magkasama kami parang nagiging inconsistent yung performance niya. Ngayon kasi nakikita ko parang bumabalik yung dati niyang laro noong kasama ko pa siya,” he said.
“Kumbaga parang narinig ko din sa Omega na parang bagong panganak na si Ch4knu na sobrang mabait siya, maaga siyang gumising, tapos parang captain na captain na talaga. Kaya sobrang natutuwa ako na ganon na siya ngayon. Sobrang mature na.”
