JOHOR BARU: Todak used their underdog status to their advantage, securing a shock 3-1 victory over Selangor Red Giants (SRG) in the upper-bracket semi-finals of the Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) Professional League Malaysia (MPLMY) playoffs today (Nov 1).
Todak claimed victory in the first two matches. Although SRG rallied to win the third, it was too late, as the three-time MPLMY champions secured the fourth game to move on to the upper-bracket finals tomorrow.
Todak head coach Ajwad "Kuja" Yusof admitted that their underdog tag worked in their favour.
"Everyone did not expect us to be in this position. I knew before the game people were saying, 'Todak will surely get beaten by SRG'.
"So we are grateful that we did not have that pressure on our shoulders.
"In the third, we lost focus in the mid-game, and I was not happy with the team However, during the interval, I calmed my players down and told them to forget what had happened and to reset," he said.
Ajwad declined to forecast a Grand Finals appearance, as the team prefer to tackle each challenge individually.
"We didn't expect to get this far, so I don't want to look ahead too much. We want to take each match as it comes," he added.
Despite the defeat, SRG are still alive in the playoffs, dropping down the lower bracket and will face the losers of the second upper-bracket semi-final between Team Vamos and Red Esports.
The winners of that clash will take on Todak in the upper-bracket finals.