T1 have completed the first phase of the triple round robin in
LCK Round 3-5 with a flawless record, winning all four of their best-of-threes. They took down Gen.G, Nongshim RedForce, KT Rolster, and, most recently on August 2,
Hanwha Life Esports. Lee "
Gumayusi" Min-hyeong was named MVP of the series, and overall, T1 are in phenomenal form — arguably the best team in the world at this early stage of the Summer Split.
Game 1 of the series remained even for quite some time. T1’s botlane picked Jhin and Bard—two champions perfectly handled by Gumayusi and Ryu "Keria" Min-seok. On the topside, Choi "Doran" Hyeon-joon’s Gwen became a growing threat, while the mid-jungle synergy between Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok and Mun "Oner" Hyeon-jun shined, notably on a clean play where Galio flashed in to taunt Orianna, followed immediately by Oner to complete the combo.
T1 secure the clean sweep
Game 2 was largely dominated by T1, who built a gold lead of over 6,200. But Hanwha Life managed to flip the game after a poorly executed Baron call by T1. The First Stand champions even took the lead, and with Park "Viper" Do-hyeon’s Senna hitting power spike, it looked like the comeback was complete. However, after 39 minutes of high tension, T1 closed out the game in a chaotic fight around HLE’s nexus. A 2-0 win for T1, but a bittersweet ending for Hanwha Life—and for fans who would’ve loved to see a Game 3 between two of Korea’s finest, regardless of the outcome.
In the second series of the day,
DRX took a 2-1 win over
BNK FearX. Lee "
Rich" Jae-won reached two milestones during the series—his 500th kill and 1000th assist—further cementing his status as an iconic LCK player. The weekend continues on Sunday, August 3, with two more best-of-threes. First, Gen.G will face Nongshim RedForce, a team still searching for its first win of the split. Then, in the Rise Group, DN Freecs will look to claim their first Summer Split victory—and second overall in the LCK split—against OKSavingsBank BRION.
Header Photo Credit: LCK/Riot Games
