T1 Completes Their Mission, Faker Breaks the Streak
Facing KT Rolster in recent seasons has never been an easy task for the T1 members. Despite having an older roster, the KT players always possess a high potential for making explosive plays. Therefore, T1 had to remain extremely cautious. The match itself demonstrated that KT was always ready to make T1 “suffer”, especially Bdd. However, in the decisive game, a calm and composed T1, utilizing the scientific macro strategies from the past, finally secured the last spot for the 2024 Worlds. Additionally, Faker also set a new milestone for himself.
Accordingly, Faker became the only player throughout the playoffs and the current regional qualifiers of LCK to bring Corki to the Mid Lane and achieve a victory. This AD-carry-oriented champion was very strong in the group stage and remained undefeated in Chovy’s hands but suddenly became a weak point in the playoffs. However, in the crucial match that helped T1 complete their mission, Faker—who no one expected—was the one to break the losing streak for Corki.
Moreover, for the first time in history, T1 has reached Worlds after overcoming the regional qualifiers. Faker himself has also “lifted the curse” for himself since the last time he had to participate in a regional qualifier (and lost) was when the team was still called SKT T1 and he was the last member of that generation.
Faker and His Teammates Have Much Work Ahead
However, the victory against KT also shows that T1 still has several issues to address, such as in coordinating combos with champions that seem to be their specialties (the wombo combo of Bard and Ziggs in game 2 is one example). T1 will still be very strong if they play at their peak performance. But the players themselves must maintain the focus they had in game 5 to hope for a deep run at the 2024 Worlds.
Additionally, the T1 – KT match was the last match of LCK, and the final match of all domestic leagues worldwide. Currently, fans of League of Legends are likely just waiting for the sounds of the opening day of the 2024 Worlds.