The Sino-Korean friendly tournament has officially turned into an “expanded LPL” with the civil war between two Chinese teams: TOP Esports and FunPlus Phoenix in the finals. The Chinese continue to assert their absolute dominance on the global League of Legends map. However, amidst this remarkable achievement, there remains a drawback named Invictus Gaming.
The 2018 World Champion continues to have a disappointing streak, as they were swept at the 2020 Mid-Season Cup. Invictus Gaming became the only LPL representative eliminated from the group stage, even without a single win.
In IG’s defeat this time, TheShy is the name that has disappointed the most. Gone is the image of the world’s number one top laner; his performance in the recent tournament was truly lifeless.
3 matches, 2 kills, 18 deaths, KDA 0.4 – All these statistics are extremely poor compared to TheShy’s actual level. However, what’s striking here is the reaction from the Chinese fan community regarding this issue.
On forums and social media in the land of pandas, the keyword TheShy has recently topped the search charts, but the reason isn’t due to his fame; rather, it’s due to a surprising wave of criticism. Many Chinese League of Legends players have hurled insults, even personal attacks, at TheShy for IG’s failure in the recent tournament:
– Now TheShy is synonymous with “trash”.
– Lucian 0/6/0. Go blind my eyes.
– Lately, he’s been streaming all the time, so he probably doesn’t have the energy to play in tournaments anymore, must be earning too much money.
– How the hell can you pick Lucian top? Do you think your opponents are noobs? Or do you still believe you’re the number one top laner, outclassing everyone, playing any match-up?
– TheShy is just a “one-season player”, his level is nowhere near Faker’s or Uzi’s.
– If I were Rookie, I would have smashed my keyboard in that guy’s face already.
– THESH*T!!!! Like a clown…
…
Furthermore, some rumors even claim that IG’s captain Rookie has expressed his extreme displeasure with some teammates, specifically Ning and TheShy, due to their lackadaisical attitude. This has intensified the wave of criticism directed at TheShy.
It’s true that when performance dips, receiving negative comments is completely normal; however, it seems that many Chinese fans are reacting excessively to the recent developments in professional League of Legends.
While it’s agreed that TheShy is losing himself, we can hardly expect players to perform like machines and maintain consistency day in and day out. When the Korean player brought Kalista and other marksmen to the top lane and annihilated all opponents at the start of the season, he received endless praise.
Yet those same champions are now the reason TheShy is criticized for his “attitude” when he fails. Many negative comments are personal attacks rather than constructive criticism, showcasing that a segment of Chinese fans are displaying excessive judgment towards players.
From being a celebrated hero who helped the LPL win the championship at the 2018 World Championship, TheShy is now experiencing the worst days of his career as he faces backlash from the very fans who once praised him.