“Facing adversity” at MSI 2025, G2’s SkewMond embraces underdog role

As G2 Esports heads into MSI 2025, jungler Rudy ‘SkewMond’ Semaan is set to make his international debut.

Starting the tournament in the Play-In Stage, G2 will first face LTA South’s FURIA Esports in what promises to be an explosive opening match, but SkewMond is confident heading into the “underdogs” battle. For the player, MSI is not just another event, it’s the culmination of years of dedication.

“I’ve been watching MSI and Worlds since 2016,” he shared with Esports Insider. “So making it to the big stage means a lot to me.”

Having followed the global League of Legends scene since childhood, competing at this level marks the realisation of a long-standing dream — to go up against the best in the world.

SkewMond’s journey embodies the typical League player’s dream. Grinding solo queue as a teenager, hoping one day to step onto the international stage. He recalled how reaching Challenger at just 16 gave him the first spark of belief.

“I remember thinking that if I made it to Challenger while just playing in my room, on a laptop, while going to school… maybe I can actually make it,” he said.

That confidence led him to follow a path all the way into the professional scene, where the dream of facing the world’s best took shape in just five years.

When asked what title he would give to the opening chapter of his international career, SkewMond chose “facing adversity,” because of the opponents he and his teammates will have to go up against. “I just want to put in more work than I usually do. I don’t want to leave any regret behind me,” he said.

But this story is not unique to him, as SkewMond’s direct match in his international debut follows a similar path. 

G2’s first opponent, FURIA, features another debuting jungler, Pedro ‘Tatu‘ Seixas — also appearing on the international stage for the first time.

“Both of us are playing our first international tournament and just hope that we will be able to show some great gameplay and we will not fall under pressure,” SkewMond said, noting the rarity of facing someone on such a parallel career path.

He acknowledged Tatu and all of FURIA’s talent, but highlighted this match as the chance to test himself against “the new generation,” referring to Tatu’s younger age. 

Yet FURIA is not the only team standing in G2’s way to the Bracket Stage, since, if the team was to win its opening match, G2 will have to go up against either Bilibili Gaming or GAM Esport. But despite entering MSI 2025 as the second seed from the EMEA region, G2 sees the Play-In stage as a valuable opportunity rather than a setback.

“If we can make it out of play-ins while beating two of these teams, it just means that we deserve that spot,” said SkewMond, believing that the uphill battle could be the momentum builder G2 needs.

Despite the organisation’s international history, G2 enters MSI 2025 as “definitely underdogs,” SkewMond admitted, acknowledging that many doubt the team’s chances of success.

“So many people say that G2 won’t make it far, blah, blah, blah…, and I mean it makes sense, right? We didn’t even win the LEC, so people don’t really have a lot of faith in us,” said SkewMond.

“But I just hope that we will be able to prove them wrong. We don’t really have that much pressure coming into the tournament because people don’t really have a lot of expectations, and I think that it’ll also just help us to play our own game.”

His confidence also builds off of the scrims taking place behind closed doors. While unable to share exact results, SkewMond admitted he’s confident in how EMEA teams are stacking up. “I think that we are being more creative in that regard compared to the Asian teams,” he said.

The player also pointed out that European drafts often introduce unexpected champions that can catch opponents off guard—something G2 is known for even on international stages. Yet, some Solo Queue results seem to indicate there might be some trouble coming for G2.

Patch 13.25 brings an additional boost to the team, with several under-the-radar champion options that could catch G2’s opponents by surprise. SkewMond also pointed to sleeper picks like Fiddlesticks and Rammus, along with more mainstream threats like Nidalee, as key variables. “But I hope that I can maybe pick Nunu in one of the games… if I can pick it in MSI, it would mean a lot to me,” he concluded, mentioning his signature pick.

As G2 Esports takes the MSI stage today, SkewMond’s story is only beginning, but he’s already intent on writing a chapter that matters.