SK Telecom T1's new roster has mixed debut in Korea

SK Telecom T1 debuted its new roster with two wins before falling out of the KeSPA Cup 2018.

SK Telecom T1 has long been one of the world’s most popular teams in League of Legends. The organization debuted its new roster with two clean victories in the KeSPA Cup 2018, beginning with a take down of APK Prince from Challengers Korea.

APK Prince focused most of its attention in the mid lane, trying to shut down Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok. This strategy could have worked in the past, but not against the new SKT.

Good communication within the new squad became apparent with Kim “Clid” Tae-min and Cho “Mata” Se-hyeong roaming through the map. Mata showed his experienced through playmaking and Clid was his aggressive companion.

APK Prince showed signs of recovery in game two after some overly aggressive plays but SKT was quick to recover.

In the following round, SKT faced bbq Olivers, a team demoted to Challengers Korea after losing their LCK 2019 spring promotion series.

SKT dominated game one against bbq Olivers. Park “Teddy” Jin-seong was the star of the series, as the bottom laner was equal parts deadly and quick. In the end, SKT won a perfect game with zero deaths across the team.

bbq Olivers fought back in game two, but SKT was able to keep its momentum going and took the victory.

SK Telecom T1 did eventually meet their match in new LCK squad DAMWON Gaming, who bested SKT in a tight three-game series. SKT was able to establish a gold lead in game three, but a series of poor team fights turned the game in DAMWON’s favor and ended SK Telecom T1’s run.

The new SKT roster has shown both great promise and potential foibles in its debut. This is one of the most hyped League of Legends teams heading into 2019, and the acclaimed esports organization is looking to reclaim its spot at the top of the world’s elite.