T1’s biggest hope had a disappointing match day
Thus, with the defeat against Hanwha Life Esports on the afternoon of May 28 (Vietnam time), T1 has ended their hopes of finishing in the top 2 after the Regular Seasons 2025 group stage. Although their MSI 2025 playoff journey will be a bit longer, T1 still has hope of participating in the upcoming event in China. However, while it’s not too gloomy, it cannot be denied: Faker had a poor performance, and the “offbeat” play of the “G.O.A.T” was a significant reason for T1’s defeat.
Specifically, in both games, Faker played somewhat… too cautiously, which resulted in a slower pace compared to his teammates. In game 1, Faker’s Viktor took too long to build the Rod of Ages, leading to a lack of damage in team fights. In the second game, the “offbeat” play meant that Faker’s Galio could only use his ultimate after a T1 member had been taken down. Additionally, Faker’s overly cautious Flash in game 1 allowed Zeka to regain an advantage in the lane.
Of course, we cannot demand that Faker always shines, and his cautious play is reasonable since even the smallest mistake could cost T1 dearly. However, the more one fears mistakes, the more likely mistakes are to happen, and this was exactly T1’s issue. Faker and his younger teammates were all too cautious. Meanwhile, HLE was unafraid of unexpected situations, and they successfully broke T1’s strategy in both games, even though T1 clearly had many advantages early in game 1.
T1 Has a Chance to Rectify Before It’s Too Late
The upcoming playoffs will allow no room for mistakes, and T1 understands this very well. In both matches against Gen.G and HLE, Faker and his teammates had opportunities but failed to seize control of the games. Against powerful opponents, a momentary lapse can turn the match around completely. Therefore, T1 needs to thoroughly rectify every mistake, play securely, but be ready to create surprises if they hope to achieve victory against Gen.G or HLE.