SINGAPORE -- The Philippines' Blacklist International is one of the teams to beat -- if not the team to beat -- in the Mobile Legends: Bang Bang World Championships (M3) held at the Suntec Singapore City Convention and Exhibition Centre here.

Coming to the tournament armed with the recognition as one of the most dominant teams in ML:BB's recent history, all pressure rested on the team's shoulders.

With back-to-back Philippine championships (both of which were dominant) and runner-up finishes in major regional tournaments, Blacklist said it has learned to accept the pressure.

"One of our mindsets is accepting the pressure because alam namin na hindi na talaga mawawala 'yong pressure sa'min and actually the best way is to [accept] the expectations even during our seasons 7 and 8 and the MPLI," team captain Johnmar "OhMyV33nus" Villaluna said in an interview.

Blacklist dominated the group stages of M3, after defeating Bedel, Red Canids, and Malvinas Gaming.

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Aside from the first upper bracket slot, Blacklist now has four days of rest before the start of its playoff campaign on Saturday.

But for top jungler Danerie James "Wise" Del Rosario, they aren't wasting any time and are getting back to the grind.

"Para sa akin, advantage, kasi may time para makapg-practice kami, 'di kami masyadong magre-[relax.] Andito kami para mag-compete," Wise said.

But OhMyV33nus said they will spare some time to relax for just a bit.

"We haven't been out, so this long break will give us one to two days to explore Singapore," OhMyV33nus said, adding that they will take time to pass by Universal Studios.

Blacklist will face the top team of Group C on Saturday, December 11.