A historic victory that
fans will remember for years to come. In an extraordinary atmosphere, Karmine Corp achieved what had seemed almost impossible just a few days earlier, defeating
(2-1) in their
Esports World Cup semifinal best-of-three.
After an unforgettable Game 3 that featured one of the most dramatic finishes of the tournament, Karmine Corp secured their second international Grand Final in just their third appearance at a major international event. Following the celebrations on stage, jungler
and support
spoke with
Sheep Esports about the team's historic achievement.
Question for Busio
In only a few days, your team came from struggling against Gen.G and TSW to winning against T1. What happened during these few days?
Alan “Busio” Cwalina: “I would say day one was just a weird day for us. We played Gen.G at 11 a.m., so we had to wake up very early. And yeah, after the Gen.G game, I don't think our review was the most productive. So the vibes just weren't the best and then the TSW series was, I would say, very difficult. Maybe overlapping from that or maybe just the fact that we all just were on a weird schedule that day. And then, yeah, after that we just bounced back because we stopped thinking as much and just played naturally.
We also saw G2 collapsing after a win against T1 at MSI. Do you feel like your team will still be 100% focused on the final? Or you can suffer from the same thing as G2 did during MSI after T1?
Busio: No, we will not suffer from the same thing as G2 because beating Anyone’s Legend was also a pretty big accomplishment within the context of this tournament. We didn't get too excited and relaxed after it; we stayed focused and did pretty well today. So I don't expect it to be any different tomorrow
You lost two times in a decisive game with high stakes this season against G2 Esports in the LEC Grand Final. Did those losses have an impact on your approach to such decisive games?
Busio: It's all about resilience and also understanding that a lot of League of Legends is luck. And just because you lost doesn't mean you're the worst team. And just because you won doesn't mean you're better. So it's just important to treat every game as a refresh. Just look at the champions, think about what you have to do, and just don't overthink.
Do you think the result would have been different if it had been a best-of-five?
Busio: No, I don't think so. I think we would also have a good result in the best-of-five. I think it looked like we were making some mistakes in the early game and then really exploding the game in a negative way from there. But once we got to team fighting, we were winning. So I honestly think the bonus was on the enemy team to do something really good in the early game because once we got to mid game and team fights, we were doing better.
Question for Yike
Is it the biggest win of Karmine Corp’s history?
Martin “Yike'“ Sundelin: “I might believe so, yeah. I'm trying to remember from all the years, but I think this is the biggest win of the club’s history. Playing against T1, qualifying for an international finals again. We did it a first time, but the second time, is also just great, right? So probably, I would say yes.
Can you explain the atmosphere of the team during the third game? What was the mood when you got behind in your first attempt to finish, to the final victory?
Yike: We were very frustrated from the early game, we were making a lot of mistakes and they had a very strong composition. We expected it to be hard but said, “Let’s just try to find angles, let’s not give up and find a way to come back.” That’s what we managed to do. They also made some mistakes, but that’s what everything does. We managed to punish them well and complete a crazy come-back I would say.”
