LCK giants T1 snapped a two-match losing streak and picked up a much-needed first victory since Faker sustained an arm injury and was sidelined.
T1 beat Nongshim RedForce, who were joint-bottom in the LCK standings, in 2-0 fashion to move up to fourth in the table, with the same record (7-4) as Dplus.
The victory comes as a huge relief for T1 after last week’s back-to-back losses. The team was no match against DRX or Gen.G, looking out of tune and sluggish mechanically without Lee ‘Faker’ Sang-hyeok dictating the pace.
In that regard, today’s performance was much improved. T1 were in control of both games almost from the start and wrapped the series up after a little over an hour. Lee ‘Gumayusi’ Min-hyeong ran riot in both games, but rookie Yoon ‘Poby’ Seong-won is also earning praise for his 7/1/5 Azir performance in game two.
[2023 #LCK Summer R2 M11 vs. NS]CONTINUE ON.👊🏻계속해서 발전해 나가는 T1이 되겠습니다.We'll CONTINUE ON and strive for victory.👊🏻#T1WIN #T1Fighting pic.twitter.com/GsR6MkR4Vd
— T1 LoL (@T1LoL) July 14, 2023
The win comes with the caveat that Nongshim RedForce are one of LCK’s worst teams, but the same could be said of DRX last week, when they were ninth in the table with a 2-6 record.
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The display reassures fans that the team has not completely fallen apart without Faker and gives them a foundation to build upon until the Korean mid laner is back from his arm injury.
There is no timetable for Faker’s return yet, but, according to former head coach Bae ‘Bengi’ Seong-woong, the earliest he could be back is July 21, when the team faces Hanwha Life Esports.
T1’s next match in the LCK Summer Split is scheduled for July 16, against Dplus.