Image credit: LoL Esports
T1 takes the win in a tightly-contested match against Team Liquid.
It wasn't clean nor was it clinical, but it was enough for T1 as they took their first win in the Swiss Stage against Team Liquid to kickstart the main event of Worlds 2023. Coming in as the second seed from the LCK, T1 did not look like themselves during their match against Liquid but one teamfight was all it took for the three-time world champions to seal the deal and take the first win.
That win now means that T1 are just three match victories away from securing a spot in the Knockout Stage with one more best-of-one in the second round and a potential best-of-three in the third round, which will also be its advancement series. As for Liquid, they will hope to avoid a second straight defeat as that will push them towards the elimination stage, which will also be a best-of-three.
The match-up between T1 and Liquid also featured plenty of history between the players as the LCS second seed had two world champions in its midst, both of which defeated T1 in the grand finals back in 2017 and 2022. The early game already featured multiple skirmishes between both teams that saw T1's top lane get brutalised over and over. Choi "Zeus" Woo-je in particular had a horrid early game but was able to turn it around when some clutch plays in the later stages.
And while Liquid weren't able to claim the victory, their defending world champion jungler Chang-hyeon "Pyosik" Hong was instrumental in the team's close loss with some great plays from Lee Sin. This also included a solo kill on T1's Sang-hyeok "Faker" Lee. Unfortunately for Liquid, all it took was just one wrong teamfight that ended with four dead from the boys in blue, which was the opening T1 needed to rush for the red team's nexus.
It wasn't a particularly great performance from either side but when it mattered most, it was T1 who came out on top with the amount of experience the lineup has when it comes to close matches. Liquid will be looking to bounce back in its second match tomorrow with hopes of making it to the Knockout Stage for the first time in the org's history.
