In the MSI 2022 finals, T1 suffered a defeat against Royal Never Give Up right on home soil, witnessing the LPL representative successfully defend their MSI championship. This was a bitter defeat, especially when the two teams pushed the MSI 2022 finals to a dramatic Game 5. However, due to some mistakes in the decisive game, particularly in the pick/ban phase, Faker and his teammates could not retain the MSI 2022 trophy for Korean League of Legends.
In subsequent interviews, both Coach Polt and Faker sparked some controversy within the League of Legends community. Specifically, while T1’s coach claimed the team’s loss was due to bad luck in the coin toss for side selection, Faker suggested that a ping of 35 had a significant impact and asserted that no RNG player made a strong enough impression on him. The statements from both T1’s coach and Faker faced mixed reactions, as many spectators felt that T1 was merely looking for excuses for their defeat and disregarding RNG’s efforts.
However, recently, T1’s CEO Joe Marsh pointed out the issue that led to T1’s loss against RNG. Specifically, this CEO made a post on Twitter. In the comments, he stated bluntly: “When you fail, you must look directly at the issue and think about what you should have done differently at that moment. Reasons like pick/ban… are just part of why we lost. We lost mainly because RNG played better on that day. Not just because of the coin toss or ping 35. We were defeated, that’s it.”
It can be said that the statement from T1’s CEO is almost completely contrary to Coach Polt’s earlier comments. In fact, RNG did indeed play better than T1. Even when on the Red side, which Coach Polt claimed had less advantage, RNG still made T1 sweat and had to hastily close the game. Clearly, it was not just about pick/ban or luck, but in reality, RNG deserved to win based on their performance in the MSI 2022 finals.
Ahead of both teams are the Summer Split 2022 and then the 2022 World Championship, with many opportunities for T1 to face RNG again. However, both teams will need to improve further, and fans are certainly looking forward to more convincing and exciting performances between the two teams in the future.