The opening match of the 2020 LCK Spring Split between T1 and DAMWON Gaming ended in a close 2-1 victory in favor of T1. After losing Game 1, T1 was able to turn the game around by winning the remaining two games. Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok joined the press room for an interview after the game and talked about the match.

How do you feel winning the first match of the season?

It was the first LCK match for us after the rebuilding of our team. Since we won it, I think we’ll be able to play with confidence in future matches, so I think today’s win is more meaningful.

How are the new players in life, attitudes during practice, synergy wise, etc?

There was never a ‘bad’ player our team and now as well, so we’re having fun together. One thing that’s different from before is that I’ve become the oldest player in the team. When I look at the other players, I often think that they’re all young and energetic. (Laughs) There are players who came up from the academy and players from other teams. Since they all treat me well, it seems that I’m difficult to them. (Laughs)

How would you evaluate today’s match overall?

The result was a win, but I don’t think our performance was as good as we wanted. There’s still a lot to improve. I think it’ll be alright if we fix them on the way.

What do you think about the match without any spectators?

It was the first time I played an official match without any spectators since I’ve become a pro player. It was really awkward and not very fun. I like to hear the fans cheering and clapping, but it felt empty that no one was doing so. To me, having spectators makes me less nervous. It’s more fun with the fans watching.

Sett was picked in all three games. Were you well prepared?

After Sett first appeared, we practiced him a lot. Since we did, we knew well about how to play him or play against him. We were able to play as a team against or with him, so it was good for us.

How do you evaluate Sett?

There’s still more to know about him, but since he’s appearing often in foreign leagues, during practice, and even solo queue, I think he’s a very good pick.

All of today’s matches were very long. Do you think it’ll continue that way?

Because of the dragon patch, I thought that the games would get longer, but the main reason that today’s games got longer was that both DAMWON and we were aiming for the mid-late game.

Recently, you stood alongside the great legendary sports players with Nike. How do you feel?

I’m very happy that I got to cooperate with such a great international sports brand. It seems that Nike clothes are very functional; I’m wearing them a lot.

You’ve been doing a lot of other activities such as appearing on national TV.

I don’t think just practicing a lot and playing in official matches isn’t all that a pro player should do, so I try to participate in as many activities that I can. I don’t think it takes up my practice time too much; it’s more refreshing for my mentality and morale.

Lastly, your thoughts on this season?

The meta changed a lot and the teams changed a lot as well. I believe this year would be completely different from last year. Although we did win the first match, you never know how it would be in the following matches with other teams so I’ll prepare well keeping the mindset of the start and do my best to get good results for this year.