T1 lost 1-2 to Dplus KIA in their 2026 League of Legends Champions Korea (LCK) regular season Round 1 match held at LoL PARK in Jongno on the 17th. After dropping the first set, T1 managed to bounce back in the second, but ultimately suffered a comeback defeat in the final set.

After the match, Acting Head Coach Lim Jae-hyeon expressed his disappointment, stating, "Even though we were in a very favorable position in the third set, mistakes occurred, and we failed to group up quickly as a team. Our team communication is lacking during the mid-game. We will work on addressing that."

The following is the full transcript of the post-match interview with Acting Head Coach Lim Jae-hyeon and 'Keria' Ryu Min-seok.

Q. Could you provide your thoughts on today's loss.

Acting Head Coach Lim Jae-hyeon= Honestly, watching the games, I thought the players' focus was very good through the first and second sets. However, it is disappointing that we lost the third set, where we were in a very strong position, due to a combination of mistakes and a failure to group up quickly as a team.

'Keria' Ryu Min-seok= We were in a winning position in the second set as well, but we couldn't close it out cleanly. In the third set, we were also significantly ahead, but we showed various shortcomings in the mid-game, which ultimately led to us giving up the match.

Q. You chose a Mel-Pyke bot lane combination in the third set.

Acting Head Coach Lim Jae-hyeon= We judged that Annie and Jarvan IV were picks we could split between us. As for Pyke, 'Keria' is exceptionally skilled with the champion, and since the mid and top lane matchups looked sensitive at the time, he strongly advocated for it, so we chose it. We decided on Mel at the last moment because, like Ziggs, it has good wave-clear ability and synergizes well with Pyke.

Q. What was the most disappointing aspect of the team's performance today?

'Keria' Ryu Min-seok= Every lane had secured priority, and the early game flow was good. However, as a team in a favorable position, our process of trading kills or securing advantages was inefficient, and those negative moments kept piling up, making the game difficult.

Q. What do you think T1 needs to regain its former strength?

'Keria' Ryu Min-seok= Until last year, skirmishing was extremely important. It was a skirmish-centric meta. While skirmishing is still significant, I believe the current meta requires us to play more rigidly and avoid taking unnecessary losses when we are ahead. In that regard, I think our team still has areas that need improvement.

Q. You face DRX in two days. What do you plan to improve.

Acting Head Coach Lim Jae-hyeon= I felt that the lack of team communication during the mid-game was a major issue. We will focus on fixing this so that we can show a better performance in the next match.

Q. Lastly, a word for the fans.

Acting Head Coach Lim Jae-hyeon= I am truly sorry to the fans for today's 1-2 loss. We will practice hard, address our shortcomings, and make sure to win the next match.

'Keria' Ryu Min-seok= I really wanted to win today, so it's very disappointing that we lost. Since we have a match the day after tomorrow, we will prepare well and make sure to show a winning performance in the next game.