The unfortunate defeat of T1 against Gen.G in the opening match of the LCK Spring 2024 theoretically has not impacted the championship race for either team. Ahead of them, there are still many long matches, and Gen.G will face T1 at least once more this season. Therefore, fundamentally, T1 players do not need to worry too much about the results. However, the performances of the players in the last match were truly concerning, especially when T1 found themselves in a dangerous situation.
The form of the players may be temporary, and the T1 stars themselves have had some acceptable performances. However, according to some assessments from professionals and fans, T1 has not shown that they are keeping up with the meta. This was first demonstrated by Gumayusi in game 1. At that time, Gumayusi chose the Bloodthirster for Lucian. This item provides healing, energy regeneration, extra health, and gold for the champion. But in reality, this is an item meant for Support. And it can’t be said that Gumayusi’s Lucian had a significant impact in game 1, as he didn’t secure any kills even though his team won the match.
Secondly, this comes from Faker’s own statement during a recent post-match interview. Accordingly, T1’s Mid Lane acknowledged: “The terrain has really changed a lot, and we, like many other teams, haven’t really adapted yet. We also haven’t regained our best form, but this will improve soon.”
Building Support items when the team needs damage clearly puts Gumayusi at a disadvantage. Especially as the game progressed towards the middle and end, Gumayusi was not really capable of dealing significant damage to any of the Gen.G players. And if Oner – Faker did not engage effectively, perhaps T1 would not have been able to end the first game at the 28th minute, and could have even lost the match. According to audience opinions, T1 did not have much practice time due to continuously participating in events while other teams had the opportunity to rest and prepare thoroughly for the new changes.
The opening loss could also be a good thing for T1 as it will help the players “wake up” after a series of days in a haze from winning the World Championship. But certainly, T1 needs to regroup as soon as possible because the journey in the LCK Spring 2024 will not be easy with KT Rolster, Hanwha Life Esports, and Dplus KIA ready to challenge ahead.