In the semifinals of the 2023 LoL World Championship, T1 defeated JD Gaming 3-1 and advanced to the finals. With the win, T1 reached the finals in two consecutive Worlds. Throughout the match, Lee “Gumayusi” Min-hyeong had a great performance. Especially in game 4, Gumayusi pulled off a great 1v2, as the team sealed the victory. After the match, he joined Inven for an interview.

It was a great victory. How do you feel?

I feel great. But we still have the finals to play, so I’m not enjoying the moment too much. My teammates and I remember what happened last year, so we’re just trying to keep it down. Obviously, we’re all happy about the win. One player was especially happy that we’re going to meet NewJeans. [Laughs]

What was the main focus in preparing the match against JDG?

First and foremost, we thought all drafts were important. We tried to get the draft to capitalize our strengths.

Many people said the key matchup was the bot lane.

A variety of champions have been appearing in the bot lane, and sometimes, those picks decide the outcome of the game. That’s probably why people say that the bot lane is important. There wasn’t any pressure, though. I thought our bot duo was better, and we had many more champions to use, so we were advantageous.

In the match between WBG and BLG, there was a double-ADC duel in the bot lane. This is actually one of T1’s favorite matchups. What did you think as you were watching them?

I thought maybe it’s too much. [Laughs] We did do it first, but we didn’t think it would go that far. We had to think about how we’ll craft the matchup if we meet them in the finals. Since we’re confident in playing that kind of matchups, it’s good for us.

T1 showcased many different champions from the Swiss Stage through the semifinals. Do you have more cards up your sleeve?

We still have a few left. Depending on the situation, we’re ready to play any champion.

Your performance today was incredible. Who do you think is the MVP of this series?

Everyone did well… Is it alright if I say me? [Laughs] I don’t know if everyone knows, but I think I did pretty well. My performance overall was good, and the in-game movement was good too. I made good shotcalls and had good key picks during the draft.

The dragon fight in game 4 was impressive. You pulled off a great 1v2 double kill against Zeri and Aatrox.

Ruler’s Zeri is really good, and I was extremely happy to have beat him. Frankly, I don’t think Zeri is that good in the current meta. It might have been an easier kill than it looks.

You fell to Ruler several times and had to watch him raise the trophy. This time, you stopped him from achieving the grand slam. What does this mean to you?

I had some grudges on him, so I’m very happy. It’s unfortunate for him, but I have to move forward myself. I feel great.

There were many highlights today, and one of the best moments was the super toss in game 3. What did you think while that play happened?

It was an incredible play. Winning game 3 meant a lot in this series, so I’d like to thank Faker for that play. I’d also like to praise the player who played Kalista for the timely stopwatch.

Did you think you could end the game right after that fight?

There were slight doubts, but we were confident that we could end and moved forward.

Your opponent in the finals is Daeny’s Weibo Gaming.

I think it’ll be really difficult. But since I think we’re a step ahead of them in terms of drafting. If they twist the draft direction, I think our mechanics are much better. I believe we’ll do well.

The main matchup to watch was the bot lane in the semifinals. What do you think the main point of the finals is?

The bot lane is still important, and all lanes are important. But in the finals, the main focus will be on the matchup between TheShy and Zeus. There should be variables in the top lane. We have to be careful, since TheShy showed picks like Graves.

T1 is LCK’s last hope. A word to the fans?

This Worlds is held in Korea, and famous K-pop idols are going to perform. We’ll make sure we win the championship. Fighting!