China's League of Legends Pro League is into its penultimate week of the regular season and it is set to be a decisive several days.
With matches taking place every day this week, LPL spectators are sure to get a clearer idea of which teams will secure playoff berths and which sides will be out of the running.
On Monday the first couple of matches of week nine took place with Anyone's Legend taking on Royal Never Give Up and Ultra Prime locking horns with FunPlus Phoenix.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Anyone's Legend saw their playoff hopes take a hit with defeat, while in the other match Ultra Prime's playoff ambitions were dashed entirely.
Their 2-0 defeat leaves them on a 3-10 record and they become the second team after basement side Team WE to see their playoff hopes mathematically quashed.
On Wednesday, attention turns to Thundertalk Gaming's clash with LGD Gaming and a high-profile match-up between Weibo Gaming and JD Gaming.
TT Gaming can keep themselves in playoff hunt
| What | LGD Gaming v TT Gaming, LPL Summer 2022 |
| Where | China |
| When | 04.45am ET, Wednesday August 3rd 2022 |
| How to watch | LPL Twitch channel |
| Odds | LGD Gaming +200, TT Gaming -275 |
LGD Gaming and ThunderTalk Gaming were the worst two sides at the LPL Spring earlier this season, having made up the bottom two in the division with 3-13 records.
But, while LGD Gaming have similarly struggled in the LPL Summer this year, TT Gaming have forged a push for the playoffs and are on the fringes of the top ten with a 5-7 win-loss record.
In their final match of week eight against divisional pacesetters Top Esports, they played aggressively, recording early kills in both of their games before ultimately losing 2-0.
That scoreline was arguably a harsh reflection on the performance of TT Gaming with a quadra-kill for Top Esports turning the tide in what had been an even contest in the early stages at least.
ThunderTalk will know they need to work on their team fights but if they can replicate that level of aggression against lesser sides in the LPL, they should have a great shot at the playoffs.
Fortunately, their next opponents LGD Gaming are all but out of the playoff race with only two wins from their 11 matches this season.
They picked up a win in week eight but that was against a Team WE side who have lost all 12 of their LPL Summer matches.
TT Gaming, formerly known as SinoDragon, are an attractive bet for the win, but the better way to play this could be to back TT at -6.5 on the Map 1 kill handicap at -125.
TT have had some tough matches recently but have nonetheless won the kill count in four of their last seven matches and, if they play on the front foot against LGD, they should again run out comfortable winners in that department.
Weibo can run JD Gaming close
| What | Weibo Gaming v JD Gaming, LPL Summer 2022 |
| Where | China |
| When | 07:00am ET, Wednesday August 3rd 2022 |
| How to watch | LPL Twitch channel |
| Odds | Weibo Gaming +125, JD Gaming -175 |
Both Weibo Gaming and JD Gaming are set to feature in the LPL Summer 2022 playoffs and their encounter in week nine could serve as good practice for the event's latter stages.
Having crashed out before the semi-final stage in the LPL Spring playoffs earlier this year, JD Gaming have been ruthless in the LPL Summer regular season, losing only two of their 14 assignments.
Their game differential of 26-12 is also among the best in the division and they are set for a decent seeding in the playoffs.
However, they struggled to match Royal Never Give Up in their last match in week eight, losing 2-1, and their clash with high-flyers Weibo Gaming could also be close.
Weibo are on a five-match winning sequence and possess one of the standout MVP contenders this season in top laner Kang "TheShy" Seung-lok, who has been named player of the match on eight occasions in the LPL Summer 2022.
They too have been one of the standout teams in the division and can keep things tight in this match-up, meaning the best bet could be to back the match to go the distance and feature over 2.5 maps at -120.
