With the quarterfinals of Worlds 2021 starting tomorrow, here is our preview for the first quarterfinal betweeen T1 and Hanwha Life Esports.
Worlds 2021 Groups Stage was fun to watch, and now we have our 8 teams that have moved on to the next phase. The four quarterfinals are set as we have a Korean and Chinese quarterfinals. LCK dominates the standings with 4 LCK teams qualifying for the knockouts stage. Let’s talk about the first quarterfinal, T1 vs Hanwha Life Esports, and break down who will win this series.
- Read More: Worlds 2021 Groups Stage Takeaways
Quarterfinals 1
T1 vs HLE brings us back to the Regional Finals where they faced off in a great best of 5 series that went the distance. For that occasion, T1 prevailed, and now we get a rematch between the two. HLE has improved immensely while T1 still look like a strong team. Let’s talk about the teams briefly before moving onto the match up.
T1
T1 has looked great thus far at Worlds like other LCK teams. They have shown that they have a good pulse on the meta and are playing around their strengths well. Oner in particular has been a solid jungler for them. Things are going well for them thus far.
The Week 2 performances cemented their spot at first place of Group B and a big part of that has been their bot lane in Gumayusi/Keria and Oner. Things are looking good for the team, and they look poised for a semi-finals berth.
However, they do struggle when things do not go according to plan. They also fall apart when Oner falls behind and fails to have an impact. T1 relies on Oner to set the pace for them while the laning phases are stable, and they constantly have control over the game and win out through their macro plays. T1 should do well in the knockouts stage if they play how they are playing thus far.
Hanwha Life Esports
HLE has been ascending ever since they started playing at Worlds 2021. HLE had a shaky first game for the tournament but then ramped up and got out of the play-ins convincingly. The team has stepped up compared to their past selves with everyone barring Chovy stepping up. Chovy has not had the greatest of tournaments with him being inconsistent. However, Deft has stepped up for the team and him and Vsta have been a strong bot lane thus far.
Morgan and Willer has stabilized as players. Morgan’s impact in teamfights is very visible while Willer has been playing better as the tournament has waned. Chovy did have that one pop off game on LeBlanc, but we expect more from him. Let’s see how HLE will perform as they face a team that beat them in the Regional Finals.
T1 vs Hanwha Life Esports
This series is going to have a lot of talking points going into the series. Two rookies in Oner vs Willer, two excellent mid laners in Faker and Chovy, etc. This is going to be a fun series to watch. HLE will want to get revenge for their previous loss and T1 will want to keep going forward into the tournament. This series might boil down to either the bot lane performances or mid lane performances.
While T1 is the better team based on the groups stage, HLE has gotten progressively better as a team as the days passed. Chovy has yet to pop off, so if he does in a series, this series could be turned upside down. LCK vs LCK series usually do go as expected but stranger things have happened this Worlds.
The key for HLE to win will be the bot lane. Getting Deft ahead to carry will be their key to success. The key to win for T1 will be to have a stable early game and play at their own pace. HLE does have a chaotic style of play so as long as T1 can play their controlled style, they should come out as victors.
Predictions
For our predictions, we are going to say HLE will win this series in a close 3-2 series. HLE has been ascending every time they play and this is the moment for them to step up. Also, they will be more motivated to beat T1 given T1 got the best of them the last time. This should still be a fun series and T1 could win as expected. However, for us, the trajectory of HLE is leading upwards, and they will cause an upset here.
In Conclusion
Regardless, this series is going to be a fun series to watch. T1 vs HLE has is going to be exciting given T1 being a strong team and HLE stepping up every time they step into the rift. It is a great way to kick off the Worlds 2021 Knockouts Stage.
Worlds 2021 Quarterfinals 1 kicks off in about 12 hours with T1 and HLE Game 1.
