Day 2 of the 2021 LCK Summer Split saw the return of Blank on the KT Rolster, from their challenger team. The team went up against Nongshim Redforce (NS), who has also made a few changes, with Gori coming in to replace Bay in the mid lane. As for the second match, we saw two titans go head to head on the rift: Gen.G Esports (GEN), and DRX.
Blank delivers, but comes up short
In-Game 1 of the head to head, Blank looked to make a statement. He wanted to show that calling him up from the challenger roster was the right move. And with the help of rumble, he did just that. Blank secured a very early lead in the game, invading aggressively into the enemy jungle, and visiting lanes extremely often. He helped secure kills in both the top lane and the mid lane. By 15 minutes, KT was ahead of NS by 6k gold and had a 9-0 kill score. Of those 9 kills, Blank had been part of 7 of them.
Aside from Blank, Dove, KT’s mid laner, as well as Noah, their ADC, put on stellar performances as well. Even Doran, who despite not having high kill participation, showed how scary a Jayce can be if he gets ahead. At the end of the game, KT had secured 18 kills to NS’ 4. Throughout the whole game, both Blank and Noah went deathless.
Meanwhile in Game 2, Blank wanted to show Peanut, who used to be Blank’s junior in SKT, how to properly jungle as Diana. Compared to Game 1, this game was less bloody in the early game. By 15 minutes, the kill score was 2-1 to NS, with both kills going to Gori on Akali. However, as the game went on, NS found more and more advantages, with Gori securing more kills. Eventually, NS closed out the game with a huge Gnar play from Rich, their top laner, bringing us to a Game 3.
In Game 3, Blank wanted to put on a performance similar to Game 1, going back onto Rumble. However, Peanut looked to show his old senior just how much he’s grown as a jungler, locking in Ekko as his champion. Nongshim looked to turn the series in their favour, and show them why they were a finalist in the 2020 KeSPA Cup. For a good part of the game, it was close between the two teams. However, NS managed to secure a baron, which they used efficiently, securing 5 towers with it. Later on in the game, they found key picks onto Noah, Dove, and Doran on separate occasions. With no instance of all the carries being alive simultaneously, NS eventually closed out the game, with a 16-9 kill score.
Gen.G lives up to expectations
In match 2, we saw the return of another big name in the LCK. cVmax returned as the head coach of DRX on Day 2 of the 2021 LCK Summer Split, after the end of his 5-month suspension. Not only that, but to emphasize again, this match had 2 titans in both Gen.G, and DRX going head to head against one another. One thing worth noting was that during the LCK Media Day, a handful of teams picked Gen.G as the team to win the split.
Game 1 showed why cVmax is arguably one of the top coaches of the LCK. It was just pure dominance from the DRX, even if it wasn’t a huge stomp. Their jungler, Pyosik, showed why he was a jungler to be feared, sticking true to his aggressive nature with Xin Zhao. The game ended with a 12-3 kill score to DRX, with the team looking to dominate Game 2 as well.
However, Game 2 was a very different story, with Gen.G putting on a more dominant performance compared to DRX in Game 1. Gen.G looked to live up to the expectations from the other teams, using a comp dependent on diving into the backline. Bdd, the team’s mid-laner, picked up Akali, while Rascal, their top laner, picked up Nocturne. In the jungle, Clid chose Volibear. While the early game was close, it was pretty much just the Gen.G show after 20 minutes.
For the final game of the day, Gen.G looked to put the series to rest, and secure the win. While DRX’ mid, SOLKA, went on Lucian, a strong mid-lane champion, Bdd got on his signature Azir. If that wasn’t enough, Rascal was able to choose Gwen, while the duo in the bot lane picked up the Jinx-Thresh pairing.
It wasn’t even close. Gen.G finally recovered the form the teams expected them to be and stomped DRX. The team ended the game with an 11-2 kill score, and an over 10k gold lead. If Gen.G keeps up this performance, they may meet their competitions’ expectations to be the victor of the 2021 LCK Summer Split.
