Free Fire Pro League 2021 Summer: Grand Finals Recap

Nobody saw this coming. Nobody expected this. Neither the casters nor the analysts. The most unlikely contenders took the throne of the Free Fire Pro League in the most unexpected fashion. From barely qualifying for the finals to winning the trophy - Total Gaming has surprised everyone with their upset win. In this article, we will sum up the best parts of the FFPL 2021 Summer Grand Finals. 

Team D went from the bottom to the top, and back to the bottom again

Based on their performances during the league stage, every team was given certain points at the start of the finals. Team D had little to no bonus because they barely managed to qualify. But in the very first game itself, Team D showed us a completely different side of them. The third circle formed over the Peak area of Bermuda, which is where most of the teams were camping and holding, waiting for the next circle to dictate where it would take them. The next circle took them all downhill towards Kota Tua. Team D was late to rotate and had to fight their way into the circle. They were able to handle the heat and take out the teams on the northern border of the circle. The last circle moved in a way that Team D had the high ground advantage. From there, they bombarded the opposition with frag grenades and M79 Grenade Launcher and won the booyah. They reached the top of the overall scoreboard in no time. 

Unfortunately, their fall wasn’t graceful. In the next game on Purgatory, they were the first team to get eliminated as Team Chaos hunted them down in an early battle in Brasilia. Ever since then, they have struggled to remain relevant in the tournament. 

Survivors 4AM and Galaxy Racers steal booyah’s off of other’s momentum

Smart placements and well-timed aggression helped 4AM and GXR to get a booyah in the second and third game of the day respectively. Both of them had a similar approach. They did not initiate any battles against other teams until they deemed it absolutely necessary. That being said, they did not give their opponents a piece of their minds if they decided to mess with them. Both the teams decided to prioritize positioning first, which won the game before the finals battles even began. Survivors 4AM were able to win on Purgatory, a map that bamboozled many teams due to awkward river rotations. Survivors 4AM got near the border wall of Marbleworks and stayed there taking potshots at their opponents while they were busy knocking seven shades of shit out of each other.

Galaxy Racers followed a similar pattern. They were the masterminds of Refinery in Kalahari. They baited other teams into battling each other on the complicated terrain while they stayed safe on a different elevation. When the circle finally closed down to naught, they were the only team with four players still on their feet. In this manner, by prioritizing positioning and knowing when to engage in battles, both Survivors 4AM and Galaxy Racers were able to win a booyah each. Unfortunately, these one-off successful games did not help them in the long run.

Consistency matters

Survivors 4AM and Galaxy Racers might have won a booyah each, but that did not really help them get anywhere close to the top of the scoreboard. It was in fact, Team Elite and TSM-FTX that were really consistent all throughout the day. Team Elite must have had so many frustrating moments. They finished in second place in three consecutive games. Three opportunities at booyahs were missed by them. They probably would have been able to win the championship if they were able to close those games out. 

TSM-FTX on the other hand was on the verge of winning and had a pretty good run all throughout the day. Unfortunately, in the last game of the day, they got eliminated in the top 6, whereas Total Gaming went the distance with a lot of kills. 

Both these teams did not win a single booyah, but their consistency got them into the top 3 spots on the overall scoreboard. 

Total Gaming surprises everyone

This is a team that barely managed to qualify for the finals. The winners of FFIC 2020 Fall finished dead last during FFIC 2021 Spring. Anyone with a sane mind would have said that Total Gaming is unlikely to win the championship and that their glory days are over. But they proved everyone wrong. Was it an experience that helped them win? Or did they hide their true power and strategies until the last moment in the finals? Nobody can say for sure. But one thing is for sure, Total Gaming has now crowned themselves as the two-time champions by winning FFPL. They are the first team to win two Free Fire Majors in India. They won the booyah in Bermuda (Game 4) by masterfully predicting the zone and controlling it. 

In the last game of the day, they survived by splitting up. They sent two of their players ahead in a messy skirmish to secure space and get as many kills as possible, while FozyAjay and his right-hand man stayed behind in a sniper tower, covering his teammate from above. They also survived and were able to get to the second spot. With their closest competitors TSM-FTX and Team Elite getting eliminated earlier than they did, they marched forth towards the trophy. 

And thus, they won the Free Fire Pro League 2021 Summer. 

We congratulate Total Gaming for winning this prestigious championship. We look forward to seeing more from them in the future.