After the victory against EDward Gaming (EDG), Faker and his teammates wrapped up the Group Stage of the World Championship 2022 successfully. The only blemish for T1 during this phase was their loss to Fnatic (FNC). However, in the rematch, T1 reclaimed both their investment and profits against the representative from the LEC region.
Falling into a group dubbed the “group of death,” T1 even dropped to 3rd place after the first round. Although they defeated EDG, T1 left many fans worried. But when the champions’ resilience came to the fore, T1 simply decimated the entire group. Even the defending champions of the 2021 Worlds – EDG could not withstand the pressure, losing both their matches against T1.
The brightest spot in T1’s lineup during Worlds 2022 compared to previous periods is undoubtedly in the AD Carry position of Gumayusi. Including the recently concluded second round, Gumayusi is one of the two AD Carries with the fewest deaths (the other being GALA). Notably, even when facing a team with strong offensive capabilities like Cloud9 (in the rematch) or one with many ranged skills like EDG (in the rematch), Gumayusi did not die even once.
Not only did he avoid being taken down, but the 2002-born AD Carry also contributed significantly to T1’s kill count, alongside Zeus and Keria. Similar to the 2021 Worlds or LCK Spring 2022, the duo Gumayusi – Keria boasts the highest performance (KDA stats) in T1. After the second round, Gumayusi’s stats have risen to an impressive 18.25 – the second highest among all AD Carries at Worlds 2022.
Remember, in the previous Summer Split of LCK, Gumayusi left many doubts as he did not perform particularly well. Moreover, in matchups against Gen.G Esports, Gumayusi completely fell short compared to his senior Ruler on the opposite side. Many opinions before Worlds 2022 began believed that if Gumayusi did not regain his form soon, T1 would once again leave the international stage empty-handed for another season.
Fortunately for T1, Gumayusi is gradually regaining his peak performance. Of course, despite the challenging Group Stage, all were just BO1 matches. If he truly wants to prove that he has fully returned to his original level and form, Gumayusi will need to perform even better in the upcoming crucial matches – where each game will be elimination and every mistake will come with a heavy price.