When the top two teams, DragonX and DAMWON, had just gone through a fierce battle, it seemed like facing a rookie team like Team Dynamics was the perfect opportunity for T1 to close the gap with the teams above them. However, once again, Faker and his teammates demonstrated their instability during the LCK group stage.
T1 secured a dominant victory in the first game, with Faker taking on Corki. It seemed like this would signal an easy stroll for them against the rookie DYN, but everyone was left stunned witnessing the abysmal performance of the reigning champions in the next two games.
In games 2 and 3, T1 players made some baffling decisions, failing to control major objectives, allowing DYN to easily secure two Dragon Souls in both matches. Unfortunately for them, both Dragon Souls that Dynamics acquired were Fire Dragon Souls – the most powerful and rare elemental dragon buffs.
In the second game, T1 lost completely and couldn’t recover, while in the third game, they once again made a puzzling choice by picking a super late-game composition with Lulu for Faker, resulting in no pressure from the mid-lane to the jungle areas, and T1 had to concede all major objectives to DYN.
In the late game, Teddy’s Aphelios was free farming and gaining power exponentially, somewhat restoring balance for T1, but it was their own damage dealer that caused their downfall, moving carelessly and allowing DYN to catch them right at their Nexus turret. Faker and the other members were drawn into a passive fight and completely collapsed, with DYN advancing straight to the Nexus and claiming a 2-1 victory over the reigning champions.
In reality, Teddy’s mistake was just the last straw; overall, T1 deserved to lose after a series of lackluster performances from the team members. After this defeat, Coach Kim’s team continues to miss opportunities to improve their standings, remaining in 4th place with 5 wins and 3 losses.