G2 Esports outclassed by Top Esports, eliminated in the quarterfinals for the first time ever
No miracle for the LEC at these Worlds. G2 Esports were crushed 3-1 by Top Esports in the third quarterfinal of Worlds 2025, falling for the first time in their history at this stage of the competition. The samurai, who dreamed of dealing the same blow they did at MSI 2024, ultimately suffered the same fate as in Round 1 of the Swiss Stage last week.
Sheep Esports compiled ratings from its editorial team to present an average reflective of the collective view on the performances throughout the four games of the series.
Top Esports: 7.5
Top Esports managed to escape their reputation, dodging the sword of Damocles hanging over their heads. They largely dominated G2 across many aspects of the game. They were able to deliver clean stomps like in Game 1, but also hold their ground and compete in difficult early games such as in Game 2, which they eventually lost. TES therefore advance to the semifinals of these Worlds, where they will face the winner of T1 vs Anyone’s Legend. It’s been a tough journey for TES, but they showed real resilience today.
369: 7
Bai "369" Jia-Hao just delivered a truly world-class BO. The Chinese toplaner completely controlled his lane throughout the series. In Game 1, his performance on Ambessa was crucial to his team’s dominance, creating space and making the difference in several key fights. In Game 2, he faced a difficult matchup—Rumble against Galio—but still managed to hold his own despite the team’s loss, with his play being one of the main reasons they stayed competitive.
In Game 3, he pulled out his signature Aatrox, the same pick on which he had already put on a huge performance against G2 during the Swiss Stage, and finally closed the series with Gnar. While his impact on the last game was slightly lower, his laning phase remained rock solid, confirming once again the consistency and reliability he’s known for.
Kanavi: 8
Seo "Kanavi" Jin-hyeok is having a very strong Worlds so far. In Game 1, he played the most prioritized jungle champion right now, Wukong, and clearly outperformed his counterpart. Game 2 was tougher on Qiyana, where he tried to make a lot happen, but things didn’t quite work out. Later, in Game 4, with the team behind, Kanavi on Naafiri managed to steal an Atakhan, turning the following fight in TES’s favor and securing the series win. Kanavi was one of the standout players for his team in this BO.
Creme: 8.5
Lin "Creme" Jian is our Most Valuable Player of the series. The Chinese midlaner just delivered a statement performance, and not against just anyone—he did it facing Rasmus "Caps" Winther, who also had a strong showing. In Game 1 on Akali, he finished with a score of 11/2/6. During a topside fight, Creme was exceptional, surviving long enough for his teammates to collapse on G2.
Even in Game 2, which TES lost, the Chinese midlaner played well on Yone, with several well-executed teamfights. In Game 3, his Hwei completely suffocated Caps’ Sylas in lane, and later in the game he landed a series of precise skillshots. For the final game, he did his job flawlessly on Viktor, finishing the BO without dying once.
JackeyLove: 7.5
TES’s botlane didn’t have an easy series, but they got the job done. In Game 1, Yu "JackeyLove" Wen-Bo delivered a stellar performance on Varus—he and his support dominated the opposing botlane and literally never got caught, finishing with a 6/0/9 scoreline. Game 2 was the toughest of the four, with a very rough start to the laning phase where JackeyLove got heavily denied in waves.
Still, he managed to stay afloat and prevent the game from snowballing too quickly, only falling after 32 minutes. One key stat for him: in all three of TES’s wins, he didn’t die a single time. Playing safer picks like Ezreal and Xayah, he survived every game and secured his spot in the Worlds semifinals—potentially his last.
Hang: 7
Fu "Hang" Ming-Hang reaches the Worlds semifinals for the first time in his career, after falling in the quarterfinals in the last two editions. Once again, he delivered a strong performance today—starting with a solid game on Braum. His Alistar game wasn’t his best, but he bounced back nicely with Karma to support JackeyLove’s Ezreal. To close out the BO, he picked Rakan to pair with Xayah, ending with 16 kill participations out of 17. Hang was truly the best support on stage today and played a key role in TES advancing to the semifinals.
G2 Esports: 3.5
They dug themselves into strange drafts, unusual picks, and a very different read of the meta compared to the other quarterfinals. They paid the price in most games. Romain Bigeard said it himself in the post-match interview: “Dylan was frustrated when coming back backstage. Then TES just clicked better than us.” He explained that his team didn’t show up at 100%, and it showed. The team was constantly overwhelmed, making mistakes that were punished hard and fast. But beyond the mechanical gap that appeared in some roles, the conditions given to the players through drafts were too difficult and odd compared to the clear game plans Top Esports executed on their side.
BrokenBlade: 4.5
Sergen "BrokenBlade" Çelik wasn’t bad, and he didn’t stand out negatively among G2. But he was put in a role where he had little impact and no real win condition in his hands. With Ornn and Galio used mainly for setup, he often ended up as the draft’s sacrificial piece, almost always in a losing matchup. Against a very disruptive 369 on Gnar in sidelane, or Ambessa being far more clutch in Game 1, he was made nearly invisible. Still, he deserves credit for holding his lane throughout the series, except in swaplane situations like with his Ornn.
Skewmond: 4.5
For the first time in a Worlds best-of-five — and at his first Worlds ever — Rudy "SkewMond" Semaan hit a wall against a monster. A monster named Kanavi, who was simply far better. Even Skewmond admitted it in the post-match: “I really think I played really poorly today.” His only win of the series once again came on his Dr. Mundo jungle against Kanavi’s Qiyana. Beyond that, on Ivern, Poppy, and Xin Zhao, he seemed trapped by Kanavi’s brilliant decision-making. The mind-jungling duel was decisively won by Kanavi, who punished Skewmond’s passivity — most clearly shown in his Poppy game.
Caps: 5.5
Despite G2’s disappointing collective performance, Caps remained the team’s best player in the series. Even though his Game 3 on Sylas offered him no real way to express himself or take the lead he’s known for, it’s hard to fault him for that choice, given it’s unclear who decided to lock in the champion from such a strange angle. He performed quite well on Orianna, Ryze, and Syndra. Although his lane opponent put him under pressure, Caps was in great form overall.
Hans Sama: 3.5
Steven "Hans Sama" Liv did not have a terrible best-of series and may position himself as one of G2’s top performers, especially in a context where many players made mistakes. He had a very rough opening game on Corki, followed by a much better game where he embraced his carry status on Lucian with an unconventional Bard. It was especially in Game 4 that the keys to the series were handed to him. He was first-picked on Draven, but it’s hard to say if he fully took on that role. Although he was the only one carrying G2’s gold advantage in the first 20 minutes and gave JackeyLove’s Xayah some trouble, he couldn’t take over the teamfights either. For the second time in his career, Hans Sama’s journey ends in the quarterfinals, with regrets since he wasn’t completely out of place in his role.
Labrov: 3
A very tough series for Labros "Labrov" Papoutsakis. His stats are harsh, with a 0/16/27 KDA, and a very questionable Thresh pick in Game 3. His rating suffers due to G2’s strange overall drafts. An ineffective Rell in the first game despite some synergy with Orianna, a Bard that led to a win but raised questions in Game 2 alongside Lucian, the Thresh with no impact, punch, or real utility in Game 3, and then a nearly ghostly Neeko compared to Hang’s Rakan.
Header Photo Credit: Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games







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