Putting Winner's League behind them! Fresh new start for Samsung Khan!
[Fomos = Reporter Kim Kyung Hyun] Defeats all of Woongjin Stars' aces and wins with a perfect 3:0 victory!
[Fomos = Reporter Kim Kyung Hyun] Defeats all of Woongjin Stars' aces and wins with a perfect 3:0 victory!
Samsung KHAN, who surprisingly performed worse than anticipated in the Winner's League, showed that their true strength lies in the Proleague style by starting off with a perfect 3:0 win over the Stars.
Samsung stood triumph over Woongjin Stars, which took place today at 1300KST at the LOOX MBCHero center, for the Shinhan Bank Proleague 08-09 Season Round 4 Week 1. Samsung Khan, who gained reputation for being the strongest team in the Proleague system, proved that they are still the strongest when it comes to Proleague by making a clean, perfect victory over the Stars.
Woongjin Stars had sent out all its ace members for today's matches. However, Samsung Khan's variety of players helped earn them a meaningful victory.
The player who ended up triumph and dominant for the first game, which took place on Battle Royal was Juni. Juni played a fierce elimination battle with GGPlay, and ended up winning with superior mutalisks micro and wise resource management. This is now Juni's 4th win this season.
On the second game, which took place on the map Heartbreak Ridge, Samsung's 'Commander' Stork made a comeback through sheer willpower. ZerO aggressively pressured Stork using Lair-tech units, but Stork eventually won by defending his expansion. This is now Stork's 19th win this season.
The last player who set the game to a 3:0 victory was Samsung's great, played on Neo Medusa. Great played a proxy hatchery in the center of the map, and by massing Sunken Colonies, contained free, and with strong defense and economy, managed to repel all attacks and take down Stars' strongest player. This is now Great's 16th win.
Samsung Khan is now in 2nd place, with a record of 21 wins and 13 losses and +12 points, creating a good start for this round. On the other hand, Woongjin Stars, who suffered the defeat, is now at 18 wins 16 losses with a score of -1, currently in 7th place.
+ Show Spoiler [Interview with Juni] +
"I think I can get up to two-digit figure wins."
"I think I can perform better now in the MST and Proleague."
"I think I can perform better now in the MST and Proleague."
Juni started off Round 4 happily by winning this round's first game.
He has managed to defeat GGPlay on Battle Royal, held today for Shinhan Bank Proleague 08-09 Season Round 4 Week 1 Day 1, the match against Woongjin Stars in the first set.
The following is the interview with Juni.
- You started off Round 4 with a victory.
▲ I recently passed the preliminaries, and now I'm very glad to have won today's game. I hope I can continue this and hopefully, perform better in the Survivor Tournament and in Proleague.
- Did you practice very hard before the start of the round?
▲ Everyone practiced a lot. Not just that, but everyone's mindset changed as well. We used to think that 'we must win whenever we have the chance'. But now, we want to start off with a pleasant and relaxed mind. I believe that is why we had such good results today.
- You won on Battle Royal. Your thoughts on the map?
▲ I feel a lot that it'll be the next Raid Assault 2. On Battle Royal, other races are pretty okay on it, but for Zerg mirror matches, it is all about skill. And I am confident about that.
- Many players feel fresh and said that they seem as though they are starting anew. Do you feel the same?
▲ It's a very new feeling. Now, I want to do everything without regrets. My grandfather recently went to have his fortune told, and it was told that our family will be doing well this year. Hence, I get the same feeling too.
- Any last words?
▲ I am thankful towards everyone who helped me practice. My elder brother got discharged from military service, and I want to congratulate him on that. And on the 18th, my elder sister is getting married. I also want to congratulate her, and to wish her all the best with her marriage and upcoming years. Also, my grandmother, uncle and aunt came to watch me play today. I feel that I have won because of their prayers. My younger brother said that he wanted to be interviewed too (laugh). He is currently studying in the An Yang Arts High School, and I hope he will do his best to reach his goal.
+ Show Spoiler [Interview with Stork] +
"I did my best to cover up for what I lacked."
"I learned a lot from the Winner's League"
"I learned a lot from the Winner's League"
As expected of Samsung Khan's 'Commander' Stork. Although he showed signs of slumping during the Winner's League, he quickly shaked it off before the start of Round 4, and returned to his former strong state.
He has managed to defeat Zero on Heartbreak Ridge, held today for Shinhan Bank Proleague 08-09 Season Round 4 Week 1 Day 1, the match against Woongjin Stars in the second set, securing his 19th win. He did not give up despite Zero's relentless attacks on his expansion, and by defending it, he finally pulled through and won the game.
Following up is the interview with Stork.
- Your feelings on winning your first match for Round 4.
▲ Although it's Round 4, it feels like the start of a new season. Because I did not perform well in Winner's League, I practiced very hard according to our team's training system. I felt that my matches versus Zergs were declining, so I'm very happy to have won a Zerg. There is another match next Tuesday, and I hope to win that too and end the week happily.
- How did you train before the start of Round 4?
▲ During tournament periods, I tried not to attempts builds and plays that I was not too confident with. I did not even attempt to practice at all. But during the break, I practiced such builds a lot, and exchanged ideas and info with many other players.
- You played against a Zerg on Heartbreak Ridge...
▲ I find it relatively okay against Terrans on the new maps. However, it has become harder to play against a Zerg on the new maps. Because I have yet to adjust completely to the new maps, it is difficult. But still, Heartbreak Ridge is somewhat playable. But when I actually played a match, it was tougher than I thought.
- You came back from a very difficult situation.
▲ There is so much room for Zerg to harass that it is difficult for us (Protoss players). My idea was to take hold of the center expo, but that got taken over. There was this instance during practice when the same thing happened, and I lost. But I managed to deal some damage early in the game, and my consistent Psionic Storm harassments are what I think contributed to my victory.
- I think you will be more keen on getting into the Grand Finals after an unpleasant Winner's League.
▲ We managed to get into the playoffs for Round 1 and 2, but we played miserably in Winner's League. That is why we want to get into the Grand Finals even more. It has become a motivation for us to try even harder.
- Your stand on Round 4 and 5.
▲ I did not specify any targets. Winning is good, but my main priority is to put in my best effort. I believe that results will then naturally show.
+ Show Spoiler [Interview with Great] +
"I was very confident in my strategy."
"My goal is to get 20 wins."
"My goal is to get 20 wins."
Samsung Khan's Zerg line up's 'Defiant Boy' Great defeated Woongjin Star's ace member and sealed a perfect 3:0 victory.
He has managed to defeat Free on Neo Medusa, held today for Shinhan Bank Proleague 08-09 Season Round 4 Week 1 Day 1, the match against Woongjin Stars in the third set, securing his 16th win. Through a proxy hatchery-sunken colony containment and a strong defense that repelled Free's harassment, Great won by playing with the concept of 'Repel All Attacks', eventually securing the win that led to Samsung Khan's perfect 3:0 victory.
The following is the interview with Great.
- You pushed Free into a corner with your proxy hatchery strategy.
▲ After the change in Medusa, my teammates said that proxy strategy looked like it would work well. That is why I kept on practicing this build, and I only lost twice through that strategy. I was very confident so I did not worry about my strategy.
- You seemed very confident about your strategy.
▲ Free's response was superb. He responded by getting the Shuttle speed upgrade, which shook me up slightly, but once a Hatchery is up in the center, the game is in Zerg's favor. You need to build that many sunken colonies. Because Protoss tend to get the mineral-only expo quickly, I tried my best to contain as fast and as tight as possible.
- Was there any dangerous moments?
▲ As I practiced with my teammates, they ended up using hallucination and recall, so I was prepared. There were no such moments.
- There is talk that you are only strong against Zergs.
▲ I practiced against other races a lot more during the break, and had many thoughts as well. I am confident in all match ups now, not just against Zergs.
- You succeeded in your 16th win this season. How many more games do you desire to win for Round 4 and 5?
▲ When the 08-09 season first started, my target was 20 wins. I am very close to that goal now. Even after I have achieved that target, I want to continue to win satisfying games. For now, my target is to win 20 games.
- Samsung Khan's Zerg line up is showing good performance right from the start of Round 4.
▲ We even shared our rooms to practice. We also experimented many builds and strategised a lot when the new maps were announced. I think that is why our performance today was good. oDin hyung (t/l note: Korean term used to indicate closeness with a male slightly older than you; a brotherly figure) has always performed well against Zergs, so I'm confident he'll do well when he plays next Tuesday.
- Any last words?
▲ I am grateful for everyone who helped me to practice. Recently, my grandfather underwent a surgery. He is still not in a very good condition, so I hope for his quick recovery.
Source:
Interview with Juni
Interview with Stork
Interview with Great
I just spoilt myself by doing this interview, but heck, it's to make up for not being able to LR for this match. Will do the Hite vs Hwaseung interviews later, or Smix might decide to pick them up ^^;
Enjoy everyone, feedback and corrections always welcome!