Not long ago, during a stream, Wolf – former SKT T1 star and member of the legendary generation that defended the World Championship title – expressed his concern about the record of the younger players. He shared that while there is joy, the young members of T1 now have to bear heavy pressure due to the audience’s perception that this team will remain undefeated.
At MSI 2022, it is essential to remember one important thing: the teams participating in the MSI tournament are all champions of their respective domestic leagues. The case of Saigon Buffalo is a special exception due to unforeseen circumstances.
And while some teams may not truly match even the other teams in the LCK, they still have the potential to cause surprises. And it goes without saying that MSI is also a tournament filled with surprises, perhaps even more so than the World Championship. A prime example is G2 Esports – the giant of the LEC, who lost twice to Phong Vũ Buffalo – a team from the “valley” region of VCS at MSI 2019.
Returning to MSI 2022, T1 is currently the “undisputed champion” of the League of Legends scene. Therefore, the pressure on them is enormous, proportional to the number of people who believe that T1 will win MSI 2022. But one thing to note is that T1 comes to this tournament as one of the teams with the lowest average age. And except for Faker, none of these players have ever breathed the atmosphere of MSI. Even Zeus and Oner are only in their first season as starters for T1.
The current young T1 squad is a powerful and talented team, and that is undisputed. Watching Zeus play, one feels that it has been a long time since T1 had a toplaner as good as him, dating back to the days of MaRin or Duke. The same goes for Zeus and Gumayusi – Keria. Not long ago, international media even ranked T1 players at the top of all positions. Oner was rated higher than Jankos, and Zeus surpassed Bin and Impact… But conversely, T1 currently lacks significant experience in international arenas.
T1 is highly rated, even higher than many other “veteran” names in the League of Legends world
Different competition formats, shorter matches, and every wrong move in the BO1 group stage matches will come with a heavy price. Of course, T1 should still easily surpass SGB, DFM, or Team Aze. But as they progress further, they will face the “big shots” who are definitely performing better than T1’s opponents in the LCK Spring. At that point, just one mistake in an instant is enough to change the course of the match.
T1 is currently the most highly regarded team, and what Faker and his young teammates have shown in the domestic league indicates that this assessment is not unfounded. But a familiar saying goes: “The greater the power, the greater the responsibility.” T1’s responsibility now is to win, to meet the expectations of the Korean fans. But no one can be sure that when the young stars bear the heavy burden of such responsibility, they will not make mistakes. Will Faker have the ability to lead his younger teammates through the challenges? The answer will be revealed when MSI 2022 officially kicks off with T1 as the opening team of the group stage.