EVOS Legends' Pinoy import Dlar ecstatic about return to international scene

PHNOM PENH - For the first time since December 2021, Gerald "Dlar" Trinchera set foot once again on the international stage, suiting up in EVOS Legends' 3-1 quarterfinals loss to Onic Esports in the Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Southeast Asia Cup (MSC) 2023 on Friday here.

The Filipino exp laner's last international stint was in the M3 World Championship, when he and his former team, Onic Philippines, competed in tournament in Singapore. He then brought his act overseas in August 2022, joining EVOS in MPL Indonesia.

But Dlar, who had been riding the bench since then, was only just given a chance to showcase his skills once more in Friday's game against the Indonesian champs Onic as he was fielded in Games 2 and 3 before they absorbed the loss.

"Sobrang saya kasi naramdaman ko ulit 'yung init sa stage tsaka 'yung mga fans nakasuporta talaga, kaya ginalingan ko tapos kung ano man 'yung mangyari basta binuhos ko lahat ng laro ko," Dlar said.

"Kahit sa mga scrims namin, konti lang 'yung laro ko, sobrang saya ko kasi tiwala pa rin 'yung mga kakampi ko. Tapos marami akong natutunan sa laro namin sa Onic."

("So happy because I got to experience again the heat of the stage and the support of the fans, so I did my best and whatever happened, I gave it my all... Even in our scrims, I hadn't played much, but I'm so happy because my teammates still trust me. And I learned a lot from our game against Onic.")

Dlar made an impact immediately for EVOS, unleashing a 1/3/3 KDA in the second game with his Uranus and two kills and two assists in the last game with Joy. Still, Dlar said that was still far from his usual game.

"About sa performance ko, sobrang kulang pa e compared sa mga ibang exp laners kasi sila palagi silang nagte-training e, araw-araw," he added.

"Kumbaga 'yung nadala ko lang is 'yung confidence sa sarili, 'yung experience ko, 'yung tiwala ko sa sarili ko and sa teammates ko."

("About my performance, it came up short compared to other exp laners because the get to train every day... All I could bring was my confidence in myself, my experience, and the trust I have in myself and my teammates.")

—JMB, GMA Integrated News