Following a spectacular best-of-five in
LCK Cup this Sunday,
Dplus Kia completed a reverse sweep against
T1 to secure qualification for the lower-bracket final, set to take place in Hong Kong next week. Despite remaining undefeated throughout the group stage, T1 fell successively
to BNK FEARX and then Dplus Kia in the playoffs, thereby missing out on qualification for the
First Stand.
The reigning three-time world champions had nonetheless appeared to have done the hardest part, establishing a 2–0 lead in the series by dominating DK much as they had in their most recent group-stage encounter. Yet the teammates of Heo “ShowMaker” Su drew deeply on their reserves to secure an unlikely victory after three additional games.
Youth breathes new life into DK
Often left to shoulder the burden in recent years, ShowMaker was this time supported by a young and talented roster, notably Choi “Lucid” Yong-hyeok, named MVP of the series after delivering composed performances in both victory and defeat. Sin “Smash” Guem-jae also displayed the full extent of his ability against his former team.
Overcome with emotion after Game 3—despite his team having won it—Oh “Career” Hyung-suk’s performance stands as one of the day’s defining narratives. After a challenging first split with DK and difficult early encounters against T1 just weeks ago, the young support was finally able to celebrate with visible relief and infectious joy, while demonstrating the mental resilience required to refocus and deliver across the remainder of the series.
A first setback for T1
As was the case last year, T1 have encountered early-season difficulties and will participate in neither the LCK Cup final nor the First Stand. Although their players continued to produce individually solid performances, the world champions at times appeared less decisive than their opponents, a factor that ultimately proved costly.
Following the match, T1 Head Coach Kim “kkOma” Jeong-gyun expressed his disappointment with the day’s outcome. “When we had the momentum, I thought things went according to our preparation. However, in the game itself, we failed to decisively capitalize on our advantageous positions,” he explained, addressing draft choices that had been questioned by fans during the three consecutive losses. It marks the first time in a decade that T1 have suffered a reverse sweep in a best-of-five series, the previous instance dating back to a match against KT Rolster in 2016—at a time when none of the current Dplus Kia players were yet professionals.
