Gen.G vs Team Heretics – VCT Masters Shanghai Grand Final: Gen.G dominates the final two maps to hoist the trophy

The Grand Final has arrived! We're at the end of our second international VALORANT tournament of the year, with Gen.G vs Team Heretics deciding the VCT Masters Shanghai champions.

We've had our new map reveal, which was of course leaked beforehand, a Showmatch on that new map, and now the grand finalists take the stage for a best-of-five series.

Look no further for a full recap of the match and clips that highlight the action.

Both teams have been outstanding at VCT Masters Shanghai. You have Gen.G, through the Upper Bracket, proving that they can be the first Pacific team to win an international VALORANT tournament.

Then you have Team Heretics, facing a G2 squad in the Lower Final that had beaten them twice before. The third time was the charm, they got their revenge, and now the young squad is on the cusp of greatness.

Only one team will walk away the champions of VCT Masters Shanghai, however. Elation and immortality awaits one while heartbreak and second place awaits another. Two hungry teams with their eyes on the prize.

You can watch the highly anticipated Grand Final series on any official VALORANT channel or co-stream. That could be on either Twitch or YouTube. You can also just stay here with us to catch the action in the stream embedded just below!

When the series begins, we've got you covered with a recap and clips to highlight it.

Gen.G became Breeze with a quick pistol round win. They easily took the next, converted their bonus, and then a 3K from Meteor got them their fourth. That forced Team Heretics into an early timeout. Another 3K from Meteor helped extend the Gen.G lead.

Gen.G ensured they'd be up at halftime, but Team Heretics finally got their first couple of rounds on the board. A 3K with a double kill at the end from Karon, however, stopped any streak from TH. The rolled into the second half with double digits.

The second half started with Munchkin getting four in the pistol round. That took Gen.G to 11 rounds. Team Heretics managed to take the next with a force buy, however. That upset the Pacific team's economy, allowing TH to take a couple more.

With weapons now in their hands, Gen.G got to map point off of a 3K from Meteor. An eco went right for Team Heretics, drawing the map out just a bit longer. They'd have no chance at a comeback, though, as Gen.G's lead was too much and they took map one.

The momentum continued for Gen.G, taking the second map pistol round. A 4K from t3xture, with the final bullet of his Marshal, secured another round. The bonus was theirs, and this did not look good for TH once again. Thankfully, they got a round before it got too out of hand.

That gave TH the push they needed, coming within one round. A Gen.G timeout did not let them reset, as paTiTek took down three to tie it. Gen.G did, however, immediately take back the lead. A Flawless followed to get them to six. They then ensured a halftime lead for map two.

Gen.G's attacking pistol strategy was a success. The next went to TH, though, as Wo0t took down three in a Thrifty. The next round was then a Thrifty in favor of Gen.G. And then, TH retaliated with another Thrifty of their own.

Team Heretics would tie it at nine, after Gen.G looked poised to run away with this one. A 3k from RieNs gave TH the lead. While Meteor got a 3K, the rest of TH shut down Gen.G to reach map point. And right after, the series was tied 1:1.

A handful of easy rounds went the way of Gen.G to begin Ascent. Even with a Wo0t 3K, Gen.G took the pistol. The next came and went, but then in round five, a Flawless victory gave Team Heretics their first of many.

The sent Team Heretics on a streak of rounds. Their defense remained strong as Wo0t was finally online with the Operator. Eventually they tied it with a hold of A Site. TH would get ahead for just a moment, as Gen.G kept it close. Munchkin ensured a halftime tie with a big 3K.

A scrappy pistol round went the way of Team Heretics, pushing them into the lead. They'd get the next one, but could not extend the lead by much with Gen.G stealing away their bonus round. A huge clutch for Boo followed as the Spike detonated, keeping them in front of the Pacific team.

Team Heretics hit double digits, but Gen.G were not done yet. A nice 3K round from t3xture with the Operator made the match just a bit longer. That's the last they'd get, though, as Team Heretics rolled through the last rounds, ending with a clutch from Boo to lock down their second map win.

Lotus started with TH taking the pistol. They'd look to close out the series here on one of their best maps. They managed the next and converted their bonus, making that look like a strong possibility. Gen.G responded, however, taking three rounds of their own in a row. This was capped by a Meteor 4K.

This started the Gen.G momentum. They'd get three more rounds, followed by a fourth, and well, you guessed it, a bunch more. A big Raze grenade from t3xture absolutely shut down Team Heretics. Gen.G would enter the second half with a 9:3 curse to fend off.

Gen.G would not be stopped with a rest of the economy and the sides swapping. The pistol round was easily theirs, followed by another to get to 11. Team Heretics was unable to muster up any sort of comeback, even in the slightest.

Munchkin would clutch up in a 2v1 situation to bring Gen.G to map point. And he'd do the same on map point to cement the win on Lotus. The plant of the Spike and a stalling of the TH retake sent the series to the fifth and final map.

Split would be the decider. And it would start with a Gen.G pistol round win. Then a 4K by Meteor put them ahead by two. They would continue stringin together rounds, as Lakia netted a 3K to bring them to six. This was with TH only putting up one so far.

Nothing was going to stop Gen.G, much like the map before. They looked utterly dominate on their way to a VCT Masters Shanghai victory. Team Heretics would put up a few rounds, however, and Gen.G had to once again fend off the 9:3 curse.

It did not look good for Team Heretics. They'd put up as many rounds as they did in the previous map and Gen.G looked primed to hoist the trophy. The pistol round, the next, and even the bonus went to Gen.G. TH was stunned.

Gen.G would lock down A Site, defuse the Spike, and bring themselves to map and series point. Another hold went in their favor at B's Heaven location. Team Heretics funneled in and Gen.G took them out to become the first Pacific team to win an international VALORANT event.

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