On the 4th (KST), SANDBOX Gaming defeated T1 in the semifinals of the 2019 KeSPA Cup, held in Ulsan. With many predicting T1 to take the victory over SANDBOX, SANDBOX defeated T1 with a set score of 3-1. Not only did Han "Leo" Gyeo-re defeat his former team, Kim "OnFleek" Jang-gyeom scored a pentakill on Olaf in game 4, at the end of the day, they proved that SANDBOX was the better team that day.

The following is the broadcast interview with Leo and OnFleek, conducted by the host, Kim Min-a.

(To Leo) You mentioned in an interview that you want to face your former team, T1, again. How does it feel to defeat them?

I feel really great for winning, and I’m grateful that I don’t have to go home after a single day in Ulsan. 

(To Leo) T1 has a very strong bot lane, so you must’ve felt very nervous and pressured to play against them.

Although they do have a strong bot lane, not only did I gain confidence through our victory last match, and when I was on T1, I played against the bot duo during in-house scrims, so I was confident in the match up.

(To Leo) Before the match, what did you talk about with your teammates?

There was much small talk before the match.

(To Leo) Who are the players that helped get rid of your nerves before tonight’s match?

It’s hard to pick out a single player, so I’ll just choose the oldest player on the team, GorillA.

(To Leo) For those that don’t know, GorillA is known as the mood setter within the team and to give out great advice to the younger players. As his lane partner, how did it feel playing with GorillA tonight?

He’s usually really good, but tonight, he made some mistakes, so I was disappointed in those moments.

(To Leo) You were very calm, yet bold at the right times. Also, despite being in danger, you bravely took the front lines, and proved that SANDBOX’s teamfighting is really strong. Was all your plays something that you honed during practice?

I just played the way I always do, so not only my teamfighting went well in scrims, it also went well in tonight’s match. I didn’t practice anything in particular.

(To Leo) On a scale from 1 to 10, how would you rate yourself tonight?

I want to give myself a 7.5.

(To Leo) In the next match, what score can everyone expect from you?

I want to perform at a 9.

(To Leo) After your loss in game 3, there must’ve been a lot of pressure for game 4. Did the coaching staff have any special orders they gave out to the players?

Our coach told us to focus, as the moment after a short break is the most dangerous time to lose focus. I think that advice was really helpful in winning tonight.

(To OnFleek) You played so perfect tonight, that everyone was at a loss for words. How do you feel about the victory tonight?

Tonight was my first time making it to the semifinals of the KeSPA Cup and coming to Ulsan. As high as my expectations were, I was very nervous as well, but I think I played pretty well.

(To OnFleek) In 2019, the moments that SANDBOX fell was in a BO5 and against T1. When you were faced with both of those factors on a big stage like this, how did you overcome the pressure that you faced?

We know that the public perception of our team is that we’re weak in a BO5. At the time, we realized that we were inexperienced and lacked in skill, so we needed to work hard to improve ourselves. I wanted to prove ourselves tonight, and I think that we seized the right opportunity to do just that.

(To OnFleek) From your performance on Elise in game 2 to the pentakill in game 4, it’s safe to say that today was your day. Did you realize that as well?

When you die early and lose your double buffs, junglers usually go hunting to retrieve the double buffs. So when I hid in the bush and caught the Jarvan in game 2, that’s when I knew that today’s my day.

(To OnFleek) We can’t leave out about the pentakill on Olaf in game 4. It’s really hard to get a pentakill in a profession match, so how did it feel when you were about to get the penta?

I saw the Nautilus channeling teleport, so I spammed my abilities in the hopes of killing him before he teleported away. After I killed Nautilus, I said, ‘Are you guys going to give me the penta’? My team didn’t realize that it was a pentakill, but when I said that, they gave me the pentakill. It felt good.

(To OnFleek) You must’ve been very nervous.

After I got the triple kill, I knew that we already won the teamfight, so I thought to myself, ‘Maybe if I’m lucky, I can pick up more kills’. Pentakills require luck.

(To both) SANDBOX is now headed to the finals. Can you share your resolutions for the finals of the KeSPA cup?

Leo: If we win the finals, not only we’ll feel great, we’ll be able to ride the high momentum into the 2020 season in the LCK. We’ll make sure to prepare well for the finals and win.

OnFleek: Our company bought us plane tickets, so because we were able to come to Ulsan very comfortably, we wanted to repay the kind gesture with victory. With tonight’s victory, we feel that we’ll play well in the finals, win, and head into the 2020 season in the LCK on a high note.