By the lofty standards of T1, the 2023 Summer split has been somewhat disappointing. At the time of writing, the team is 6-2 in the LCK. By comparison, T1 have lost just four matches over the last two splits combined. The slow start has seen them leapfrogged by an undefeated Gen.G as well as a one-loss KT Rolster. However, part of the issue may lie with the health of their veteran mid laner, Faker.
Faker, who has been spent his entire career with T1, has essentially professional League of Legends every week since 2013. When he's not in pro play, he's more than like at home or at the training facility playing the game. Faker has a 3.7 KDA this split, which puts him around the middle of the league for that category. If he maintains that KDA, it would be his lowest tally since the 2021 Summer split. However, Faker recently revealed that he has been dealing with an injury that has affected his play.
Faker Receives Treatment For Arm Injury
Speaking after T1's 2-1 series win over Nongshim RedForce on July 2, Faker revealed that he was being treated for an arm injury. "I haven't been feeling well recently. I believe my performance since the BRION match may have been impacted because of this [...] I am under treatment and in talks with the team," Faker told the media. The news hit an international audience thanks to a translation from veteran reporter Ashley Kang. Arm injuries can be common, especially in more intense leagues such as the LCK. Dplus star Showmaker received treatment for a wrist injury in 2020. Meanwhile a recurring shoulder injury led to the first retirement of Chinese legend Uzi in 2019.
T1 played BRION Esports on June 17, meaning that the issue has been hampering Faker's play for nearly two weeks. However, T1 has gone 4-1 during that span, only losing to the aforementioned KT Rolster. While Faker reassured fans that the injury wasn't too severe, he won't have much time to recover. T1 are scheduled to play DRX on July 5, giving him just three days of rest. This is a developing story and we'll have any updates here at HotNewHipHop.
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