EPTSo in Shanghai, the 2 remaining teams will compete for the gold in this grand team league final. We have two teams that rival one another not only in the gaming scene, but outside the gaming scene as well (SK Telecom and KT are rivaling companies...i think....). In less than 8 hours, these two teams will collide in a culmination of countless hours of practice and coaching. Only one team will be victorious, and who exactly will that be? Let’s analyse this through several factors.
1. Line-up:
Both teams have very good line-ups, consisting of very skilled players, as well as consistent players. I’m just going to go over the players that will most likely appear in the line-ups of both teams. Since I’m an SKT fan, let’s look at their line-up first.
Bisu:
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/OLIut.jpg)
one sexy mofo right there
Stats:
PvT: 62.50%
Last 10: 8-2
PvZ: 71.11%
Last 10: 8-2
PvP: 64.15%
Last 10: 6-4
one sexy mofo right there
Stats:
PvT: 62.50%
Last 10: 8-2
PvZ: 71.11%
Last 10: 8-2
PvP: 64.15%
Last 10: 6-4
So looking at these stats here, Bisu seems to be a reliable player in proleague (considering that he broke the record for most wins and won the mvp award for proleague). By looking at his most recent performances, it would be most advantageous to send him against any non-Flash terran or any Zerg. Despite his higher overall PvP percentage over PvT, I would not trust Bisu in PvP, since he tends to flop every now and then (like he did in last year’s final). It’s also most likely that he will be played in ace match, even if it’s against Flash (explained later). So to conclude:
Most likely sent out against (regular sets): Action, Hojjea, any other Zerg
Would not be surprised to be sent out against (regular sets): Stats, Tempest, any non-Flash terran
Most likely sent out against (Ace match): Flash, Stats
Best:
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/5vo33.jpg)
another sexy mofo right here
Stats:
PvT: 65.05%
Last 10: 7-3
PvZ: 47.42%
Last 10: 4-6
PvP: 61.33%
Last 10: 4-6
another sexy mofo right here
Stats:
PvT: 65.05%
Last 10: 7-3
PvZ: 47.42%
Last 10: 4-6
PvP: 61.33%
Last 10: 4-6
Next is the PvT powerhouse: Best. If there’s anyone you want to send out vs. Terran, it’s this guy. His powerful macro-style PvT has beaten even the likes of Flash in proleague. The thing is, however, he sucks terribly at PvZ and his PvP is more of a flop than Bisu’s at this point. So I wouldn’t really put in him against anyone other than terrans, and maybe a Protoss if he has a specific build in mind that would work. One more thing to note that despite his monstrous PvT, it’s very unlikely that he would get sent out for Ace, even against Flash (explained later).
Most likely sent out against (regular match): any Terran, including Flash
would not be surprised to see sent out against (regular match): Stats, Tempest
Most likely sent out against (Ace): Flash
Fantasy:
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/3b8gm.jpg)
Will he flop in the finals? Let’s hope not.
Stats:
TvT: 60.18%
Last 10: 5-5
TvZ: 56.30%
Last 10: 3-7
TvP: 65.00%
Last 10: 9-1
Will he flop in the finals? Let’s hope not.
Stats:
TvT: 60.18%
Last 10: 5-5
TvZ: 56.30%
Last 10: 3-7
TvP: 65.00%
Last 10: 9-1
Fantasy is a player known for moments of sheer brilliance, but also known for moments of equal dullness. If there’s one match-up Fantasy is reliable in, it’s TvP, a matchup in which he has nearly Flash-level ability. His TvZ and TvT can be brilliant, but it’s very dependant on certain factors: namely how well he feels like playing that day and whether or not he has a specific build from Oov that he’s executing. But all joking aside, Fantasy can be very versatile overall, it’s just that he tends to inconsistent. He is another likely candidate for ace match (explained later):
Most Likely sent out against (regular match): Stats, Tempest
would not surprised to see sent out against (regular match): Action, Hoejja
Most likely sent out against (Ace): Flash, Stats
soO
photo unavailable =(
Stats:
ZvT: 48.15%
Last 10: 5-5
ZvZ: 37.93%
Last 10: 4-6
ZvP: 65.22%
Last 10: 9-1
photo unavailable =(
Stats:
ZvT: 48.15%
Last 10: 5-5
ZvZ: 37.93%
Last 10: 4-6
ZvP: 65.22%
Last 10: 9-1
SoO has proven himself to be quite a good ZvP player. He’s the player to look out for if you’re a KT Protoss, since that’s most likely who he’s going to be paired against. He can also probably take out any KT rookie terran.
Most Likely sent out against (regular match): Stats, Tempest
would not surprised to see sent out against (regular match): Barracks
s2
photo unavailable =(
Stats:
ZvT: 33.33%
Last 10: 1-9
ZvZ: 50.00%
Last 10: 7-3
ZvP: 65.52%
Last 10: 7-3
photo unavailable =(
Stats:
ZvT: 33.33%
Last 10: 1-9
ZvZ: 50.00%
Last 10: 7-3
ZvP: 65.52%
Last 10: 7-3
SKT has more than one good ZvP player, but the thing about S2 is that he has a decent ZvZ record too, so it is pretty likely that we’ll see him face a Zerg as well.
Most Likely sent out against (regular match): Stats, Tempest
would not surprised to see sent out against (regular match): Hoejja, Action
By.Sun:
photo unavailable =(
Stats:
PvT: 64.29%
Last 10: 6-4
PvZ: 42.86%
Last 10: 4-6
PvP: 30.77%
Last 10: 2-8
photo unavailable =(
Stats:
PvT: 64.29%
Last 10: 6-4
PvZ: 42.86%
Last 10: 4-6
PvP: 30.77%
Last 10: 2-8
Winner of the rookie of the year award for SPL, Sun is a pretty solid player based off of his recent performance. He seems like he would be a good sniper of someone like Action or Hoejja, but unfortunately, I don’t think he’s good enough to take out Flash just yet. I do, however, think that he can easily take out any rookies in KT’s lineup without too much difficulty.
Most Likely sent out against (regular match): Tempest, any KT rookie
would not surprised to see sent out against (regular match): Action, Hoejja, Stats
Other potential players (Read: other players I don’t feel like commenting on): Paralyze, yeOngJae, Ssak, Hyuk (unlikely).
Now with that out of the way. Let’s look at KT’s potential line-up:
Flash:
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/87XxS.jpg)
The current God of BW. Taking one game off him is an accomplishment itself
Stats:
TvT: 74.88%
Last 10: 7-3
TvZ: 70.50%
Last 10: 6-4
TvP: 70.06%
Last 10: 5-5
The current God of BW. Taking one game off him is an accomplishment itself
Stats:
TvT: 74.88%
Last 10: 7-3
TvZ: 70.50%
Last 10: 6-4
TvP: 70.06%
Last 10: 5-5
Flash is going to be a tough cookie for SKT to crack. He’s got ridiculous winrates over every race, and his current performance is certainly very good. What’s even better about Flash is that he wins when he needs to. We can tell by (most) of his SL performances in the past 2 years and even last year’s SPL finals. You can sned Flash up against anyone in Proleague and have an almost guaranteed victory, so it doesn’t really matter who he goes up against.
Most likely sent out against (regular match): anyone
Most likely sent out against (Ace): Bisu, Fantasy, Best (unlikely) that he’ll appear.
Hoejja:
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/dKSjO.jpg)
Doing pretty well as of recently. Solidity you can count on
Stats:
ZvT: 30.77%
Last 10: 2-8
ZvZ: 40.00%
Last 10: 4-6
ZvP: 58.14%
Last 10: 8-2
Doing pretty well as of recently. Solidity you can count on
Stats:
ZvT: 30.77%
Last 10: 2-8
ZvZ: 40.00%
Last 10: 4-6
ZvP: 58.14%
Last 10: 8-2
Hoejja is a damn good ZvP sniper, for starters. Completely disregard his ZvZ and ZvT (they aren’t all that good), because it’s almost certain that Hoejja will be sent out vs a Protoss. Whether it’s Bisu or By.Sun, I don’t know, but if there’s any Zerg that will give Bisu a run for his money, it would be Hoejja.
Most likely sent out against (regular match): Bisu, Best, By.Sun
Would not be surprised to see sent out against (regular match): Fantasy
Most likely sent out against (Ace): Though he isn’t a likely Ace option, I would say Bisu.
Stats:
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/wmr9j.jpg)
Chintoss discusses how he will dismantle his opponent(s) in the Finals
Stats(heh...pun):
PvT: 57.41%
Last 10: 6-4
PvZ: 52.46%
Last 10: 2-8
PvP: 62.50%
Last 10: 7-3
Chintoss discusses how he will dismantle his opponent(s) in the Finals
Stats(heh...pun):
PvT: 57.41%
Last 10: 6-4
PvZ: 52.46%
Last 10: 2-8
PvP: 62.50%
Last 10: 7-3
Stats is KT’s next most all-round solid player. He has at least a 50% winrate in everything, and has had pretty good results in the post-season so far. He’s very good vs Protoss, so i would expect him to be sent out vs another toss, like By.Sun or Best. We saw him dismantle Bisu thoroughly last year, and who knows, we may even see him sent vs Bisu again. I also wouldn’t count him out vs Terran either, as he might have a build to snipe Fantasy, or he may just even cream a terran rookie.
Most likely sent out against (regular match): Bisu, Best, By.Sun
Would not be surprised to see sent out against (regular match): Fantasy
Most likely sent out against (Ace): Bisu or Fantasy
Action:
picture unavailable =(
Stats:
ZvT: 43.33%
Last 10: 4-6
ZvZ: 48.00%
Last 10: 4-6
ZvP: 53.49%
Last 10: 6-4
picture unavailable =(
Stats:
ZvT: 43.33%
Last 10: 4-6
ZvZ: 48.00%
Last 10: 4-6
ZvP: 53.49%
Last 10: 6-4
Another relatively solid playerin KT’s line-up. He can do ZvP and ZvZ (somewhat), but it’s most likely that we will see him vs a Protoss or Fantasy. I don’t know why, but I have some strange feeling that there will be a Fantasy vs Action game, even despite being behind him 1:4 in head-to-head.
Most Likely sent out against (regular match): Protoss, including Bisu
would not surprised to see sent out against (regular match): Fantasy, SoO, s2
Tempest:
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/cjOC1.jpg)
I don’t know why, I just find this guy to be really funny
Stats:
PvT: 43.24%
Last 10: 4-6
PvZ: 41.18%
Last 10: 3-7
PvP: 56.52%
Last 10: 5-5
I don’t know why, I just find this guy to be really funny
Stats:
PvT: 43.24%
Last 10: 4-6
PvZ: 41.18%
Last 10: 3-7
PvP: 56.52%
Last 10: 5-5
I dont know why, but Tempest reminds me of a 08-09 Jaehoon. Something about him is just really silly, and I almost think that this guy can pull a win out of nowhere in the final. I’m not just saying this because he managed to pull a victory against Canata’s cheese -> cheese all-in last year. But yes, all goofiness aside, he’s best suited vs. Protoss.
Most Likely sent out against (regular match): Best, By.Sun
would not surprised to see sent out against (regular match): Ssak, Fantasy
Perfective:
Picture unavailable =(
Stats:
ZvT: 20.00%
Last 5: 1-4
ZvZ: 33.33%
Last 9: 3-6
ZvP: 83.33%
Last 6: 5-1
Picture unavailable =(
Stats:
ZvT: 20.00%
Last 5: 1-4
ZvZ: 33.33%
Last 9: 3-6
ZvP: 83.33%
Last 6: 5-1
A very strong ZvP sniper based on his ZvP stats. This guy can prove to be fatal for SKT’s protosses. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him play ZvZ, though, since he can probably snipe.
Most Likely sent out against (regular match): Bisu
would not surprised to see sent out against (regular match): S2, SoO
Other potential players: Barracks, Crazy-Hydra, Reach (highly unlikely. The manliness would be too imba).
So with the line-ups described, I feel that KT has a slight advantage overall with their line-up due to more consistency among their players. I’m not counting SKT out though, as their rookies have stepped up before, and I’m sure they can step up again.
2. The Ace match
Remember how in the player summaries I kept saying things about their Ace pairings and said that I would rationalize it later? This is the section where I do that.
Should this come to an Ace match, the mind games become most rampant here. The Ace match is more than just a match that is played to determine the winner. So many factors outside the game affect what is done inside the game. For example: in the 08-09 proleague, Fantasy mentioned in his interview that he talked to Oov instead of Boxer prior to the ace match (Day 2) so that Hwaseung wouldn’t expect Fantasy’s aggressive strat and instead expect a more eco-based build.
But one other factor that adds to the mind games, and may even be the deciding factor even before the game begins is “what build should I use?” We saw in the 2011 SWL that Flash was sniped by Bisu not because Bisu was godly good, but because he predicted Flash’s build and did a build to snipe that. Yes, even players like Flash are susceptible to things like that if they are well executed. Which brings me to my rationalization for Bisu or Fantasy as SKT’s Ace:
Since the Ace match involves specific builds meant to potentially snipe players based on their play-style, the two best candidates meant to execute such a build would be either Fantasy or Bisu because, to be quite frank, these two players have shown in the past that they can successfully snipe key players, especially against other team’s Aces.
That’s not to say that KT doesn’t have their own snipers. In fact I’d say that Stats and Flash are the two most likely snipers for their team because:
1. If there’s anyone who can execute a build meant to hit the opponent at an awkward timing, it would be Flash.
2. Stats has proven in last year’s proleague that he can snipe Bisu.
So the Ace match will prove to be a very mind-game heavy match. I’m leaning towards a Bisu vs Flash ace due to the fact that it’s SKT’s best player vs KT’s best player.
3. Thoughts about match-up/ predicted results.
One more thing I should probably mention that needs to be taken into consideration is that the 1st place team prior to post-season usually has an advantage over the other team for the following reasons:
1. Since they don’t play in the playoffs/semis, they don’t have to reveal any builds
2. Since other teams reveal builds and play-styles during the post-season, it makes it easier for the 1st place team to practice against the opposing teams and makes sniping easier.
We noticed this trend the past 2 years (as far as i know):
08-09: 1st place team prior to post season: SKT
winner of 08-09: SKT
1st place prior to post season 09-10: KT
winner of 09-10: KT
(In fact, Bisu used a certain build multiple times during playoffs, and again in the finals, so that is what made him easily sniped by Stats).
So with that out of the way, I feel that consolodating all of the advantages that both teams have I’d give a slight edge to SKT.
Now for my predicted matchups/results:
I thought about it, and I figured two possibilities: Either KT wins 4-3 or SKT wins 4-2
so for the 1st possibility:
Sets 1-6: (in no particular order)
1. Fantasy > Tempest
2. Best < Stats
3. SoO < Flash
4. s2 > Action
5.Bisu > Hoejja
6. By.sun < Perfective
Ace: Bisu < Flash
SKT 3:4 KT
and Possibility 2:
Sets 1-6 (in no particular order)
1. Best < Flash
2. By.Sun > Hoejja
3. Bisu > Perfective
4. Fantasy > Action
5. s2 < Stats
6. soO > Tempest
SKT 4:2 KT
Sp yeah...there are my thoughts on the PL grand finals ^^;
I am really hoping for SKT to win this and I hope Bisu > Flash (or stats) it would be epic.![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/ZupN5.png)
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/8DpYO.png)
