Malaysia's d4v41 helps Paper Rex beat Team Liquid in Valorant Champions Shanghai opener as G2 crush TYLOO

Paper Rex, the Singapore-based team with Malaysian veteran Khalish "d4v41" Rusyaidee in the line-up, have made a winning start at VALORANT Champions Shanghai. On Thursday, 24 September, they beat Team Liquid 2-1 in the first match of the tournament. In the other Group C match, G2 Esports swept Chinese hosts TYLOO 2-0.

Paper Rex and G2 now meet in the Group C winners' match, while Liquid and TYLOO drop to the lower bracket.

Paper Rex 2-1 Team Liquid

Paper Rex looked in control on Ascent. They came back from 0-4 down to win 13-4, and Russian star Ilya "something" Petrov scored the first ace of Champions Shanghai along the way.

Liquid hit back on Haven and won 13-7. VLR.gg said the European side played an unusual composition there, with Yoru and Raze as duelists and Harbor as their only controller, and it worked.

The deciding map was Lotus. Paper Rex led 9-2 after a strong half, but Liquid cut the gap and made them fight for the last rounds. Insider Gaming said a double kill by Singapore's Wang "Jinggg" Jing Jie turned the momentum back, and that d4v41 closed out the series with a clutch ace. PRX took the map 13-10.

d4v41 got 25 kills on Lotus, the most of any player on that map, according to VLR.gg. something led the series with 58 kills and a 1.38 rating. For Liquid, Kamo had 49 kills, and new signing GSR had the team's best rating in his first Champions series.

Insider Gaming noted that Paper Rex have "not exactly had the year many envisaged" for this roster, so the opening win is a useful boost.

G2 2-0 TYLOO

The Chinese crowd at Jing'an Sports Center wanted a TYLOO win, but G2 were too strong. TYLOO drew level at 4-4 and 6-6 on Lotus, with Splash causing problems on Neon. After halftime, G2 won the second pistol round and then took seven rounds in a row to win the map 13-6.

Sunset was one-sided. G2 led 10-2 at half and closed the map 13-3. Hotspawn credited Trent with 38 kills and 20 assists across the two maps. Valyn had 30 kills and BABYBAY had 25.

According to Hotspawn, this was TYLOO's first Champions appearance, with four players making their international debut. After the win, Valyn told Sheep Esports: "I had the most fun I've ever had on a stage."

What comes next

Fragster lists the rest of the Group C schedule:

• 29 September: Paper Rex vs G2 Esports (winners' match)
• 1 October: Team Liquid vs TYLOO (elimination match)

Group D begins today, 25 September, with Nongshim RedForce vs NRG and then Karmine Corp vs Xi Lai Gaming. VLR.gg lists the NRG match at 5pm Malaysia time. Group B follows on 26 September with Global Esports vs Team Vitality and LOUD vs EDward Gaming.

Sixteen teams from four regions are playing for a US$2.25 million prize pool. Only eight get out of the groups. The group stage runs until 4 October, and the playoffs move to the 18,000-seat Mercedes-Benz Arena from 7 October. The grand final is on 18 October.

Paper Rex finished fourth at Champions 2025 in Paris and were runners-up in 2023.

Key takeaways

• Paper Rex beat Team Liquid 2-1 (Ascent 13-4, Haven 7-13, Lotus 13-10) in the opening match of Champions Shanghai.
• Malaysia's d4v41 got 25 kills on the deciding map, and something scored the tournament's first ace.
• G2 swept TYLOO 2-0 (Lotus 13-6, Sunset 13-3) and play Paper Rex in the Group C winners' match on 29 September.
• Group D starts today with Nongshim RedForce vs NRG at 5pm Malaysia time.

FAQ

Who is the Malaysian player on Paper Rex? Khalish "d4v41" Rusyaidee. His teammates are something (Russia), Jinggg (Singapore), f0rsakeN (Indonesia) and invy (Philippines).

How does the Champions group stage work? There are four double-elimination groups of four teams. Two teams from each group go through, so eight of the 16 reach the playoffs.

When is the Valorant Champions 2026 grand final? 18 October 2026, at the Mercedes-Benz Arena in Shanghai.

Sources: Insider Gaming, VLR.gg, Fragster, Hotspawn, Dot Esports, Sheep Esports, Wikipedia