"As it's Beichuan's first international event, and the other four members of us are experienced, the responsibility should definitely not be on him. We need to do better as a core and we should be able to carry"
Bilibili Gaming’s hopes have been dashed by their fellow Chinese representatives, resulting in their elimination from the 2025 Mid-Season Invitational. Forced to limp back home, the Worlds finalists must now regroup ahead of the Summer Season. In an exclusive interview, midlaner and star player Zhuo "Knight" Ding sat down with Sheep Esports to discuss the reasons behind the loss, his hopes for the future, and what makes Anyone’s Legend the best team in the LPL.
How have you been handling the result mentally?
Zhuo "Knight" Ding: "We’ve left a lot of regrets on that stage. Game one in particular was winnable, but losing it hit our morale hard. It became even harder for us to come back in the later games. We made some mechanical mistakes here and there, and I feel really sad about the result.
Before the match, you mentioned concerns about lacking synergy due to limited time and roster swaps. How do you feel about BLG’s growth since Yang "Beichuan" Ling joined? Do you still see positive progress for the team overall?
Knight: Since he joined us, I feel like we made a lot more progress. It’s a positive. But, well, just like in every international tournament, we’re facing the very best teams from each region in the world. It’s hard to catch up to their level. Still, we have the potential—we can do better than this.
What would you say to people criticizing Beichuan?
Knight: Since it’s his first international event, and the other four members of our team are very experienced, the responsibility and fault should definitely not be on Beichuan, but on the four of us instead. We need to do better as a core and be able to carry.
This result is far from your past achievements—champions in 2023, runner-up in 2024, and now fourth place. How do you feel about your performance at MSI 2025?
Knight: I’m really sad about MSI 2025, especially because for the past two years, we were much more competitive. We need to make a lot of progress and do better. At least we still have time, and the year isn’t over—we have to try our best and improve.
What do you think went wrong with the team after Worlds 2024 Finals?
Knight: Momentum and form come and go. It’s really hard to maintain a constant level of performance. At the start of the year, we struggled, but I’m hoping our potential will come through if we keep working hard and progress.
Do you think the introduction of Fearless Draft negatively affected BLG?
Knight: This isn’t an excuse for our performance. Every other team started with the same base and switched to Fearless Draft at the same time as us.
As someone who's experienced a lot of success, how has it been for you to face setbacks like this? Is it a new experience to no longer always be the best team?
Knight: As I’m a veteran, I’ve had a very long professional journey. I’ve had ups and downs, and I’ve had even worse periods in my career. I don’t see this as the worst moment, especially since I believe in our potential.

Looking at today’s match against Anyone’s Legend, who do you think was the biggest game-changer? What aspect of their play made them hardest to deal with?
Knight: We really fought hard in drafts—it was really exciting. Still, I think the main reason for our defeat was simply the pace of the match. Anyone’s Legend were really good at snowballing and had a great pace throughout the match. They have really good management of their tempo. It was the hardest thing for us to deal with.
Do you believe Anyone’s Legend can win MSI and bring an international title back to the LPL?
Knight: AL is advancing on a really high note. They performed very well, and they have the potential and a high probability to win the whole tournament. Their synergy, coordination, in-game play—AL is a great team."
Header Photo Credit: Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games