Read below for the squad interview!

Q. With today’s Summer Season win, you were successful in pulling off a consecutive 2 season win streak?

Head Coach Choi Byung-hoon (L.i.E.S): I’m very proud. We didn’t have a lot of time to prepare for the Finals matches, but our players and coaching staff all worked so hard regardless. I’m proud that we got a result that we could be satisfied with.

Coach Kim Jung-kyun (KkOma): Our gameplay today came out really well. But there still were some mistakes. We will improve upon those mistakes and win the World Championship this year no matter what.

MaRin: It is our 2nd Season win. I am very happy that we were able to win all the tournaments that were open this year. I hope that we will be able to win all the Seasons next year as well.

Tom: I wasn’t able to play in the series today, but I’m happy that we won quickly with a 3:0.

Bengi: It’s my 4th Season win and it was a new experience because I wondered, “I’m at 4 Season wins?” I’m not completely satisfied with the plays today. I’ll work even harder to show you better plays.

Easyhoon: I’m a bit disappointed that I did not get to play today. But like our Head Coach said, I’m glad that our hard work and efforts were translated into good results today.

Faker: Our great results stemmed from practices. I’m glad that we were able to retain that form coming into the Finals. We’ll ride this flow and keep our sights on a World Championship victory.

Bang: I worried a lot about the Finals. But I wasn’t as nervous as I thought I would be. I want to maintain this form all the way to Worlds.

Wolf: I was also very worried about the Finals. I’m now very relaxed and feel very happy because we had such great results.

Scout: Going forward, I will continue to work hard so that I will be able to play and show you great gameplay!

Q. Did you have any plans of subbing out the Faker - Bengi roster if things didn’t work out?

L.i.E.S: We are definitely able to swap them out depending on game results, but we believe that the players’ conditions are the first priority. Even if we lose, if they are still in good condition, they will continue to play. The decisions are very fluid, made on the spot so we didn’t come in with prepared decisions beforehand.

Q. Did you really anticipate the 3:0? There are rumors that you were hiding a lot of cards at the end of the regular Season?

KkOma: We jokingly said that it would be a 3:0, but it was misrespresented and misunderstood so it was disappointing. We worked hard to prepare so we were confident that we could win, even if we lost 1 game. We’ve never hid any cards. We just gave every match our all, and I think that alone was enough to allow for the successes that we’ve had.

Q. In today’s matches, you banned Shen, Fizz, Lulu, a lot of picks that seemed to be targeted at Kim “Ssumday” Chan-ho. What was the ban/pick concept like today?

KkOma: We didn’t ban them because Ssumday was good, but rather that our players have wide champion pools. So, we intentionally shrunk the available champions using the bans so that we would have an advantage. Even if the opponents had taken Maokai, I think that we would still have won.

Q. You’ve said that there were some insufficient points today, what were they?

KkOma: They could have won more cleanly, but they fought even when outnumbered. The players probably know their mistakes better than I do. We will work to fix those points and show you an even more evolved SKT T1 at the World Championship.

Q. You said that your players have large champion pools during pick/bans. Recently, a lot of reworked champions are being played in lanes like Top and Mid, did SKT prepare a lot of those picks?

KkOma: It’s reasonable for everyone to assume that we study the new champions and are able to play them well. It’s slightly disappointing that we weren’t able to show you everything that we had prepared.

Q. Your Malphite pick stood out today, was it a response to the opponents’ Ashe?

KkOma: Yes, it was. We especially practiced with it a lot on the Purple side. To be more accurate, it was a pick aimed at playing against Fizz rather than Ashe. Ashe just felt like a bonus. It wasn’t shown on screen, but when the Fizz pick came out, we all yelled.

Q. You practiced a lot with the KOO Tigers yesterday, did it help a lot?

KkOma: The ban/picks came out mostly from the Head Coach and the players. I don’t think it was a help for our ban/pick phase, but it was definitely a help for maintaining the players’ feel for the game. Honestly, I felt that they were cheering for our team’s victory even more than all of our players’ families (laughs).

Q. In Game 1, you faced LeBlanc, a pick that was unexpected?

Faker: I’ve faced LeBlanc quite a few times in Solo Queue. It helped a lot, and even though there were some shaky moments in the game I believed that we could make up for them during teamfights. Ban/picks went pretty well for us and I believed that we are more talented than KT Rolster. I was able to play the game with a calm mind.

Q. Your Maokai undefeated streak continues, how long do you think you can continue with it?

MaRin: Maokai is scheduled to be nerfed. Even so, I believe that my win streak will not be broken the next time I am able to pick him. At Worlds, if the situation is favorable for a Maokai pick, I know that I will have an option to pick him. I think to give a more accurate judgment, I will have to see how badly he gets nerfed.

Q. You were able to win twice. But compared to other teammates, you don’t get the attention?

Bang: Coach always tells me that I am the ace. However, everyone on our team does so well that there weren’t many situations where I would get highlighted. During ban/picks, Vayne was banned against me all three times. I’m satisfied that I was able to contribute by being a part of the pick/bans. I don’t really care much about titles like MVP. I believe that my value goes up in conjunction with our team doing well, so titles like MVP or ‘Ace’ don’t really matter.

Q. You don’t really blind pick Mid very often? We’re curious as to whether you picked Riven as a show of confidence, or that it was a favorable pick against the opposing team.

Faker: Before the Finals, I got wrecked by NaJin e-mFire’s Azir. I felt that it was a really good pick and practiced it a lot, so we first picked the mid champion. I picked Riven after looking at the team composition, but I feel that I’m still insufficient in understanding it fully. I’m very disappointed about that.

Q. We’re curious as to why Kennen was picked when it wasn’t a frequently used pick.

Wolf: After seeing the KOO Tigers’ games, I discussed the pick with Kang “GorillA” Beom-hyun, who I’m friendly with. We talked a lot about Kennen, and picked him because it seemed like a great pick.

Q. Compared to your skill level when you won Season 3 Worlds, how would you compare your skills now?

Bengi: I think I was a bit better then because I was 2 years younger at the time? (laughs) Comparing skills…I think that my style has changed a lot so I can’t really make a comparison. I’ve never thought of myself as “the best jungler ever.” I want to prove my skills at the World Championship.

Q. You played against Lee “Piccaboo” Jong-beom today. You were able to cut him off in your jungle many times – was it a strategy you prepared because of his playstyle?

Wolf: During practice, we practiced a lot keeping his unique color in mind. Everyone was aware of his style of play and made the calls anticipating where he would move on the map, and they turned out to be correct.

Q. During today’s matches, which scene was the most relieving? You’ve won yet again, are there any plans for vacation time?

L.i.E.S: During Game 2′s pick/bans, all the coaching staff and players were happy when the Fizz was picked. We predicted a win the moment Fizz was picked. The game flow was also great to see, but when our pick/bans worked out well the way we had planned, we felt really happy. We are preparing for Worlds, but there is one month left. The Head Office gives so much care to our players, and as a prize for winning, they’ve booked us a celebratory trip to Hawaii. After we come back from Hawaii I believe the Regional Finals will have concluded? We will definitely enjoy the trip equally as much as all the effort and care the Head Office has provided us.

Q. It seems as though you are unable to start as much because Faker is on your team, and you might have a lot of disappointment because of this. Any resolutions for Worlds?

Easyhoon: As a player, it is disappointing that I’m not able to play. But because I believe that my value as a player increases with the value of my team, it doesn’t really matter. I would definitely love to play at Worlds, but I feel that winning is more important.

Q. Who would you pick for the most distinguished player today?



L.i.E.S: It’s really hard to pick one player because everyone did so well. But if I had to pick, it would be Wolf. There was a lot of burden on him because he had to face Piccaboo. People kept comparing them. I’m very thankful to him because he showed strong mental fortitude and played well until the end.

KkOma: I really can’t pick. League of Legends is a team game, and when one player would slip up, they showed a beautiful sight – the others would step up and do even better. Wolf did so well in Game 3. It’s a shame he couldn’t do that well at MSI…(laughs) I’d pick Wolf as the most distinguished player today.

Original Korean Inven/Naver article here: http://sports.news.naver.com/sports/index.nhn?category=e_sports&ctg=news&mod=read&office_id=442&article_id=0000022204

Photo courtesy of Inven.co.kr!

