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T1 and DRX have shown the world that the LCK is back in form – but which team will be crowned the 2022 World Champions and lift the Summoner's Cup?
The 2022 League of Legends World Championship is nearing its conclusion, with the Grand Final just days away. The semi-finals were everything we were promised and more – it was a weekend full of nail-biting, exciting games in a stadium full of passionate fans.
League of Legends Pro League fans were on the edge of their seats watching their region’s sole representatives JD Gaming attempt to follow in the footsteps of the Worlds 2021 champions Edward Gaming and take the trophy home once more. League of Legends Champions Korea fans, too, were eager to see their region reign supreme. T1 and DRX both had great challenges to face, but ultimately triumphed. Let’s dive in and take a close look at the two thrilling series from the LCK representatives and learn what we can expect when the two teams face off in San Francisco, California.
T1 outperforms JDG
Both T1 and JDG had shown up in spectacular fashion in their previous games at Worlds 2022. When last we saw JDG, they had just crushed the collective hopes of the West, having decisively beaten the sole representative of Europe, Rogue.
T1 also had an impressive and calculated showing against RNG one week ago. Neither team was going to make these semi-finals easy, but T1 managed to secure the win and end the series against the LPL representatives 3-1.
The semi-finals match between T1 and JDG started off with an intense Game 1. The two teams were neck and neck for the majority of the game. Mun 'Oner' Hyeon-jun was able to grab First Blood for Lee 'Gumayusi' Min-hyeong in the bot lane, and T1 was able to continue exerting pressure on the bot side and securing kills in the early game.
However, JDG had their eyes set on the Dragon. By the 31st minute, JDG were able to secure the fourth Dragon kill. It was around this point that they began to tip the scales in their favour, skirmish by skirmish. Upon securing the Elder Dragon, JDG were able to push out mid lane and secure their first, and only, win in the series.
The second game started off far more explosively than Game 1. In the bot lane, even before hitting level two, JDG's bot lane managed to secure a kill onto Gumayusi – though, not without his loyal support Ryu 'Keria' Min-seok taking JDG's marksman Wang 'Hope' Jie’s life as payback. The game slowed down after this skirmish, with each team securing a kill here and there and keeping the scoreboard nice and even.
Through it all though, T1 maintained a subtle lead and Choi 'Zeus' Woo-je began to ramp up kills on his excellent Yone. T1 showcased remarkable patience and excellent command of the map as they forfeited a Dragon kill on one side of the map while securing the Baron Nashor and two inhibitors in return by the 28-minute mark. One decisive fight in the mid lane, helmed by an incredibly powerful Yone, secured T1 their first win in the series.
Game 3 started off similarly, with JDG securing several kills and taking an early game lead. While the mid-game was bloody, neither team could be said to be holding a decisive lead over the other. The game-deciding team fight occurred after T1 secured Baron Nashor at the 29-minute mark. JDG's jungler Seo 'Kanavi' Jin-hyeok was caught in T1's jungle, prompting T1 to pursue JDG instead of resetting. This one kill quickly snowballed into a victory for T1, who ended the game at the 30-minute mark.
After that win, T1 was definitely feeling confident. They made it look easy in Game 4, securing First Blood in the bottom lane with no jungle help at level two. Gumayusi quickly snowballed – and he wasn't the only one. Every one of T1's lanes was winning decisively, and they secured JDG’s Nexus by the 24-minute mark, thereby securing their spot in the Worlds 2022 finals.
DRX’s unexpected win over Gen.G
This semi-finals match was preceded by an incredibly powerful five-game quarter-finals against EDG – a series that proved that DRX cannot be underestimated. But, while many hoped, few truly expected DRX to deliver a performance as impressive as the 3-1 series against Korea's top seed, Gen.G.
Game 1 started off in DRX's favour – jungler Hong 'Pyosik' Chang-hyeon managed to secure First Blood for his top laner Hwang 'Kingen' Seong-hoon, as well as to secure the first Dragon of the game. In spite of this, Gen.G took control of the game after the 10-minute mark passed, and by 25 minutes, Gen.G held a decisive 5,000 gold lead over DRX.
Remarkably quickly, Gen.G translated their gold lead into a Baron Nashor kill, which snowballed them further and allowed them to ace DRX in their base by the 29-minute mark and give Gen.G their first win of the series.
DRX did not let that first defeat bring them down. Though Gen.G commanded a steady gold lead throughout most of Game 2, DRX played patiently and methodically. By the 32-minute mark, DRX was able to secure four Dragons and Baron Nashor, at the cost of one of their inhibitor turrets.
This allowed them to make a play for the Elder Drake, which they managed to take down as soon as it spawned. Kingen defended DRX's base as Kim 'Deft' Hyuk-kyu stormed Gen.G's base and destroyed the Nexus, securing their first win.
DRX went into Game 3 with visible confidence. Pyosik was on fire in this game, scoring First Blood for Kingen in the top lane and leads for midlaner Kim 'Zeka' Geon-woo and Deft on the bot side as well. They held an impressive gold lead throughout the game, but the decisive battle did not take place until minute 29.
What looked like a great engage from Gen G’s Han 'Peanut' Wang-ho and Jeong 'Chovy' Ji-hoon turned into a bloodbath as Pyosik and Zeka entered the fray. DRX instantly capitalised on this won team fight, storming Gen.G's base and advancing to match point.
The final game of the series started off slow. Both teams were feeling the pressure when a fight broke out mid lane at the nine-minute mark. Incredibly, DRX managed to secure First Blood as several members of the team were left at single-digit health. This game truly could have gone either way, the two LCK representatives standing shoulder to shoulder in gold, kills and Dragons by the 30-minute mark.
As always, it was a Dragon fight that decided the outcome of the game. Pyosik managed to secure the Dragon Soul just as Kingen and support Cho 'BeryL' Geon-hee engaged with a devastating amount of crowd control. This fight was succeeded by a swift Baron Nashor kill. DRX then stormed Gen G's base and secured their spot in the Worlds 2022 finals alongside fellow LCK representatives T1.
Now the stage is set for an all-LCK Grand Final. T1 have had one of their best years ever, with a flawless run through the LCK Spring Season and an incredibly dominant performance so far at Worlds. But DRX have shown that they can't be counted out, rising from the Play-In stage all the way to the Grand Final – and they're the first team in Worlds history to do so. Whatever happens this weekend, it's sure to be utterly unmissable.
