Knockout Stage Day 3 Preview: Have T1 Still Got It?

Day three of the knockouts brings us a fantastic matchup. LCK giant T1 takes on LPL hopeful TES. Both teams made it through the Swiss Stage with a 3-1 record.

As the Swiss Stage continued, both teams grew in dominance and performance. T1 dominates Worlds; domestic form goes out the window, and they turn it up for this tournament. TES has represented internationally throughout this year but has often needed to improve in the key moments.

The Teams 

This page will provide a preview of this matchup. It will discuss each team, their recent performances, and some insight into players likely to be the key. Both teams have improved with each game, so predicting a winner is more complex.

TES

The last time we saw TES, they made easy work of DK, winning the series 2-0. Game one was smooth and controlled. TES enabled Jackeylove, got him ahead, and then dictated the game through his damage. 369 put in a fantastically disciplined performance on the Ksante, prioritising keeping his ADC alive with excellent peeling. In game two, 369 was unleashed on the Ksante, which was nearly impossible for DK to stop. A special mention has to go to the playmaking skills of Tian and Creme in this match. They both had 21/25 kill participation in this game and were integral to nearly every play.

Coming up against a strong again T1 here will be an incredibly tough challenge. 369 and Tian must be on form and maximise any slight advantage or opportunity. Zeus and Oner have been crucial for T1’s success so far. Creme is also a significant threat TES could look to put in a winning matchup. He has shown his prowess not only on AD champions but also on the Aurora team now. T1 may look to slim his champion pool with bans. TES will need to out-draft T1 as there is slightly more quality on the T1 roster.

T1

In the game that ensured T1’s advancement, we saw them win a series against G2 2-0. This series was built up to be a great matchup, but in the end, T1 showed their quality and strolled to victory. In game one, we saw Zeus show how to counter the heavily prioritised Jax pick, which caused so many issues for teams.  He pulled out the Gragas pick, which countered the Jax perfectly. He and Oner then influenced the rest of the map, which snowballed into an easy win for T1.  For game two, confidence was high for T1 after that game one performance. Especially when you consider G2 drafted a very similar team comp, and T1 had just easily outplayed them. Game two showed us a Faker masterclass on his renowned Ahri pick. He was highly influential across the map and was involved in 18/23 kills for his team.

T1 will know that the majority expects them to win in this matchup. People consider this T1 roster to be much stronger than that of TES. It does bring added pressure, but T1 is used to pressure as it comes with being the most successful team in Worlds history. Faker will look to take a massive step towards that fifth Worlds title.

Betting on TES vs T1

It is predicted to be a close series, and neither team has heavily favoured odds. When looking at GG.Bet the current odds for a T1 win are 20/27. Meanwhile, a TES win had odds of 100/101. (Odds subject to change.) The odds are slightly favoured towards T1, but it is only slightly. It is expected because T1 is the ultimate Worlds team. For more betting advice, check out our LoL Worlds betting page.

Final Thoughts 

As we reach day three, we can see the semi-finals taking shape. T1 is a team that consistently performs at Worlds, and I can’t see a semi-final in which they are not one of the teams still competing. TES should not be counted out. This team is perceived to crumble in the big moments. They will be more determined than ever to prove that thought wrong.

Our Recommendations

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• GG.Bet
• Bzeebeet
• Rivalry
• Bet365
• 1xBet
• Thunderpick
• BC.Game
• RooBet
• Stake.com