[Interview] 2012 GSL S3 CodeS RO16 Group C

You are back in ro8 after one whole year. How do you feel?

Great. Ro8 means you have a Code S spot for next season and I’m happy because I can play without any pressure from now on.

You advanced in first place. That must make it even better.

To be honest, I didn’t practise any TvT for today. There were two Protosses so I focused on them and somehow I won a TvT to advance in first place.

Keen played very aggressively. How did you deal with this?

I didn’t practise TvT but I did watch Keen’s VODs. He used the build that Gumiho once used against him. Despite having seen the build in action, I still took a lot of damage from the hellions and thought about just typing in GG. I kept playing without giving up and thanks to Keen’s mistake with stim, I was able to win.

In the winner’s match, you had two games where you had 200 army battles.

I didn’t expect Genius to pick Whirlwind for Set 2. I thought I was done for after I found out it was cross-positions spawn. I used a build that I had prepared for another map and it didn’t work. I tried to end it early by being aggressive but my opponent held out and the game dragged on. I could have finished it earlier but I made a mistake with the rally and my army was split over several places.

You have qualified for OSL and now advanced to ro8 in GSL. Your comeback is complete.

Not quite. I’m not too happy about my performance today. I was too nervous. Of course my goal was to get to ro8 and secure a spot in Code S and I have realised it.
Next time, I’ll try to play more relaxed.

How far will you go before you say you are back?

I’ve made it as far as ro4 before so I think I should go at least that far.

Did you talk to MKP after he was eliminated in ro16?

We didn’t talk about his being eliminated and I don’t think he’s too hung up on it either. He’s very strong mentally. At the moment, he complains that TvZ is difficult and is collecting various builds. I recommended a build to MKP for his OSL qualifier. He lost a game that he had basically won because he stuffed up. Then, he has the nerve to blame the loss on me (laugh).

Anything to add?

I want to thank my practice partners Tear, MC, Top, Creator, Classic, and Maru.
I saw that Coca qualified for OSL. I want to congratulate him. Also, I think I was a bit vague in my OSL qualifier interview. I couldn’t get the meaning across that I wanted. I want to take this opportunity to apologise for that mistake.
Lastly, in two days, I’m the first player in our GSTL match so I hope to have a great game against Alicia. Alicia is a player I like very much.

Your thoughts on advancing to ro8 for the second season in a row?

I’m not sure how I should feel. Every season, I think that I will get eliminated so advancing to ro8 doesn’t feel real to me.

You started by losing the first match to Genius. How did you feel then?

I became depressed because I couldn’t stop the stalker in Set 1 and lost as a result. However, I just told myself that there were plenty of opportunities to make up for this at other tournaments and that I shouldn’t give up. Then, I lost Set 3 and got really mad. However, the break between the matches helped a lot in calming me down.

You took a 2:0 victory against Keen in the loser’s match. Did the matches play out as you expected?

It was more difficult than I expected. I once beat Keen 2:0 at Dreamhack so I thought it would be very easy but straight away with Set 1, it was a gruelling match. Having observed Keen’s play in foreign tournaments, I tried to counter his strong point which is multitasking and this worked to my favour and contributed to my win.

You had a rematch against Genius in the final match. Did you expect to be able to take your revenge?

I did have a rematch against Genius but I didn’t care who my opponent was. Between the two players in the winner’s match, Byun is the better player but I saw that he was nervous and was confident about taking him on also. I’d already lost to Genius in the previous match and he’s also a very experienced player so I was a bit nervous but psychologically, I felt that I had the upper hand. I have eliminated Genius in the previous season and in that aspect, I had the advantage.

Genius didn’t get the colossus range upgrade in Set 3 of the final match. Were you aware?

I had no idea.

You played very defensively today. Is there a reason for this?

There is. Last season, I played very aggressively and I expected other players to have figured that style out by now. Also, Byun and Keen are both aggressive players. I’m confident about long macro games so I played defensively and opted for macro play.

What is your opinion on Zerg getting stronger after the patch?

The reason Zerg got stronger is because the buffed queen range makes it difficult for Protoss to pressure the Zerg. Also, even if you go for the late game, Zerg has huge production so they have the upper hand. I happened to think that Zerg was very strong even before the patch. Protoss does not win against Zerg in long games. I hope David Kim watches more GSL and learns why Protoss has to all in off of two bases all the time.

You are the only foreigner to reach ro8 for two seasons in a row so are you proud?

Of course. I feel that I have already outdone Jinro’s achievements. Things were much easier back then. The fact that Jinro is no longer in Code S is proof of that. In my opinion, the two strongest foreigners are myself and Stephano. Also, rather than the fact that I’m a foreigner in Korea, I’m more proud of the fact that I’m Swedish.

Are you confident about advancing to ro4 which will be the best result a foreigner has achieved?

I set the goal too low last season. So this season, I know it will be hard but I am aiming for the championship. My least confident matchup is PvZ but if I overcome this hurdle through practice, there is every chance that I will win.

If you had to point out the biggest hurdle to your victory?

In my opinion, the best Protoss at the moment is Creator. I feel like if you can beat Creator, you can beat any Protoss. Last season, I lost to MVP but rather than me playing badly, that was just MVP playing really well. As long as improve my psychological aspect, I should be able to beat anyone.

Who do you expect to face in ro8. Anyone you want to face?

I think DRG will take first place in his group. I hope it’s Supernova or Ryung. If either makes it, I would be willing to treat them to anything they choose. I think it would be meaningful if Nestea makes it in first place and faces me too. If I beat Nestea again this time, he won’t have any excuses.

Can you speak any Korean?

Despite my long stay in Korea, I don’t know any Korean at all. I haven’t been able to learn any because I’ve been busy so I want to start once this season is over.

Anything to add?

Parting is the only player who practised with me. I am extremely grateful to Parting and want to thank many people on the ladder.