On Nov. 12, in the semifinals of the 2023 LoL World Championship, JD Gaming clashed against T1. JD Gaming had high hopes to advance to the finals and win the championship, as achieving a grand slam was at stake, but they weren’t able to overcome the avalanche from T1. After the match, JD Gaming head coach Yoon “Homme” Sung-young joined the media for an interview.

What was the biggest reason for today’s loss?

I thought we almost had the win in our grasp in game 3, but it was turned around, and we lost. That was probably the biggest reason.

Although you lost today, JDG had a fantastic year. Are you proud of the results? What words of comfort do you have for your players?

Although the end was regretful, the players worked really hard. I'm proud of what the players achieved. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to make it past the semifinals, but I’d like to tell my players that they did well.

JDG won the coin toss, but you picked the red side. What was the reason?

We did lose game 1, but the draft went as we expected. We felt T1’s strategy worked better on the red side, so we wanted to take it away from them. Also, we thought we would have a more advantageous situation on the top or bot side.

What was the biggest regret?

The game being turned around in game 3. Everyone makes mistakes, so I should have given picks that the players could do better. It’s regretful that we lost because of me.

Renekton had an abysmal win rate. Why did you pick it? What are Renekton’s strengths and weaknesses?

Renekton gets weak in the late game. I do think that it isn’t as good as other champions in late-game teamfighting. In game 3, our plan was to demolish the bot lane. Renekton doesn’t lose to Aatrox that easily, so I asked him to endure whatever comes.

Faker’s Azir was amazing. What measures did you take to prevent his plays?

T1’s fight-initiating champions, Azir, Rell, and Orianna, were good. They played those champions well. I should have tried to stop it, but it’s my fault that I didn’t. I should have given better champions to my players.

Which T1 player showed the best performance today?

I think the mid and jungle did well today. The mid and jungle initiated all the fights splendidly, so I’d like to say those two.

Why did you pick Zeri? Were there any other champions in mind? Did you expect T1 to pick a long-ranged support?

Since T1 picked Jarvan IV, it was difficult to pick a champion with little to no mobility skills. We were considering Tristana, Zeri-Lulu, or Kai’Sa. Since it could be our last game, we went with the pick we were confident playing.