T1 entered the LCK Summer 2020 tournament as the reigning champions, but their first opponent was no easy task: DragonX. True to the nature of a clash between two top Korean teams, both sides delivered a thrilling match for the audience, though from a professional standpoint, it was a disaster for T1.
The most notable highlight of this match belonged to two names: Faker and Keria. The support player from DRX had an outstanding game 3, being the key factor that brought about the turnaround and ultimately secured victory for his team against the reigning champions.
As for Chairman Faker, this will likely be one of the most forgettable matches of his career. In the first game, Faker played Orianna – a champion he is confident with, albeit not his signature pick – and T1 clearly had the intent to continue their control playstyle, which has helped them dominate domestically.
However, during critical combat moments, Faker’s execution of the ultimate Command: Shockwave repeatedly “missed the mark.” There were three instances where T1’s captain used Orianna’s ultimate only to hit empty air and fail to connect with any targets from DRX.
Faker’s performance, which could be described as quite painful to watch, immediately reminded many Vietnamese fans of a similar scenario: Optimus in the match against Fnatic at the 2017 World Championship. Of course, losing is one thing, and no one can deny that Faker and Optimus are both masterful stars, just because of one poor game.
Ultimately, T1’s poor start in a summer tournament is no longer surprising. After each defeat of Faker and his teammates, we often say that T1 has a lot to improve if they want to become LCK champions again, but the reality proves that their group stage performance has nothing to do with their playoff performance (if T1 can qualify for playoffs).
Therefore, contrary to what might be expected, T1 fans received this loss relatively calmly. Yes, today, Faker and some teammates played poorly, but this is just the first match, and they still have enough time to assess the issues and rectify them. Even in losing to DragonX, T1 remains the top contender for the LCK championship, as usual.