SIBOL’s all-female Mobile Legends: Bang Bang team is heading in the right direction, despite falling short in its debut at an open international tournament during the China-ASEAN Esports Competition last week.
Composed of Omega Empress, undoubtedly the best female team in the Philippines, SIBOL competed in Group A against eventual champion Cambodia (CFU Gaming) and host China (Xianyou Gaming) but finished with a 0-2 record.
“Good learning experience ‘to for my players, since our next goal is now to reach their [male players’] level. It’s a long process, pero we will find ways to reach that goal soon,” SIBOL head coach Salman “King Salman” Macarambon told Tiebreaker Times.
Although top-tier teams from the region were unable to join the tournament due to the ongoing MPL schedule, national federations still managed to send formidable squads to the two-day competition held in Nanning, China.
CFU Gaming, currently the top-ranked squad in MPL Cambodia Season 7, was able to make a side trip with the local playoffs set for October 17. It also helped that the team had already completed its elimination round campaign as early as Week 4, giving them ample time to prepare and travel for the tournament.
Meanwhile, Xianyou Gaming recently competed in the ML:BB Mid Season Cup at the Esports World Cup in Riyadh, China. The team of Filipino superstar Kielvj “Kielvj” Hernandez placed 13th-16th in the tournament.
Other participating teams included Singapore, mostly composed of former ex-pros and players from NIP Flash, Myanmar (Falcon Esports), Malaysia (TODAK Legion), and Indonesia, which sent the Empress’ rival, Team Vitality. Vietnam also fielded an all-female squad.
Completing the 11-team lineup were Brunei, Thailand, and Timor Leste.
Macarambon revealed that the team still has much to work on if they aim to reach one of their main objectives: matching the level of their male counterparts.
“Pinaka-need i-improve talaga for us, especially for the players, is ‘yung confidence to think well and make the right decision inside the game. Also, their map reading and predicting the enemies’ next move,” said the former TNC standout.
The EWC champion coach expressed pride in her team for embracing the challenge and fighting through adversity, including having to play a different version of the game during the tournament.
“Ginawa naman namin ‘yung best namin, sadyang mas ahead pa lang talaga ang mga male teams sa amin now lalo’t mga MPL-caliber din ‘yung nakalaban namin,” said Macarambon.
“Also, malaki lang din talaga naging factor ng hindi same version ng ML na ginamit sa tunay na version na nilalaro ng Empress,” he added, noting that some of the heroes often used by the players were not available in the version used.
