Following a swift victory against Top Esports at the
League of Legends 2024 World Championship,
T1 advances to the tournament's semifinals, likely preparing to face off against Gen.G in the next round. In a press conference,
Oner, the team's jungler, responded to various questions from the media and discussed his anticipated rematch against Gen.G.
How did you feel about picking Poppy today? Are you happy with T1's performance today?
Mun "Oner" Hyeon-jun: "I think Poppy is a really good pick and I like playing her, so I’m satisfied with that. I think the opponent's ban strategy was well-prepared, and we made the right choices in our bans. There was a lot to discuss about each other's ban picks. It’s a game where we have a say in each other's decisions.
It was a tough summer split for T1 this year, yet you’ve shown significant improvement. What steps did your team take to reach this level coming into Worlds?
Oner: Yeah, I can say we were underperforming and had a little slump during the summer season. I think it was mostly due to a lot of unfortunate events happening to us throughout that time. It was a combination of very unfortunate events overall, so we couldn’t achieve the results we all wanted. But as we headed to Worlds, we were in a situation where we could solely focus on the matches and the game itself. Our ultimate goal was to perform well, and since we tend to improve slightly every time we are at Worlds, I think that had a very positive impact on our performance.
Many teams struggled with Ahri, but T1 showcased her differently today. What are your thoughts on T1’s Ahri? Also, did you prepare a lot for the opposing jungler, Tian?
Oner: I think we hold Ahri in very high regard, and we made a good composition for her to play against their champions. As for the jungler, Tian, he’s a very good player, which is why I prepared a lot for him. I think it's easy to understand the champion pool of TES's mid-jungle, so I created a good strategy to match that. Ahri has always been highly evaluated by our team, and we focus a lot on building good compositions to make her work and give Faker some space. Today, Tian played very well, whether he was on an aggressive or supportive champion.
T1 after their victory against TES. Credit: Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games
What’s your favorite composition of the day?
Oner: I really like the comp we played in game 2 because I finally got to play Xin Zhao after such a long time. I can say for sure now that the current meta allows me to play Xin Zhao again, so I’m pretty happy.
If you had to choose your semifinal opponent, would you prefer to face Gen.G or FlyQuest?
Oner: [laughs] I actually wish no one makes it to the semifinals, and we just automatically win, but that’s impossible anyway. Honestly, I don’t want to face either of them, but it seems likely that Gen.G will make it through. We'll do our best to prepare to face Gen.G.
You had a challenging year in the LCK, with Gen.G dominating Korea. What are your expectations for a possible semifinal match against Gen.G?
Oner: We’ve faced Gen.G so many times that we really don’t want to face them again. But we also have a lot of recent memories of losing to them, so it could be a chance for us to get our revenge. We’re very confident when it comes to bigger stages and best-of-five formats, so I think that can have a positive impact on the result. Personally, my goal for the potential Gen.G match is to leave with no regrets, regardless of the outcome. If I can meet that goal, I’ll be satisfied, but I really want to take Gen.G down.
Given recent struggles against Gen.G, what message do you have for fans hoping to see you become champions again?
Oner: I’m aware that all the fans want us to make it happen again, and we will do our best to deliver another amazing match. We’ve lost to Gen.G a lot recently, and a lot of people already know that. So if Gen.G is our opponent in the semifinals, many will expect us to lose to them once more. But my personal thought is that we will play our hearts out to beat them this time. Please keep supporting us and send us even more love and stronger energy. With your support, we’ll be able to play even better on that day. I look forward to your support as well. Thank you."
Header Photo Credit: Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games
