Worlds 2020 Group Stage Team Preview: Team SoloMid
By s. samek
We look at Team SoloMid, their path to Worlds 2020, and how they might fare in the group stage.
Team SoloMid were predicted to be one of the best teams in the LCS ahead of the 2020 Spring Split despite massively underachieving in the previous two seasons and failing to qualify for the World Championship. This disappointment came after the legendary organization appeared at the first seven Worlds tournaments, so what can we expect from TSM now that the drought has ended?
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The Season
TSM began the Spring Split as one of three expected title contenders alongside Cloud9 and Team Liquid. Nonetheless, they struggled to a mediocre 9-9 regular season record and finished fourth in the playoffs.
This triggered roster changes with Dardoch and Kobbe making way for Spica and Doublelift ahead of the Summer Split.
No doubt, these signings made an instant impact as TSM climbed to a 12-4 record during the regular season and qualify for the playoffs in strong form. However, this form soon came to an end as they were defeated 3-0 by Golden Guardians in their first playoff game and dropped down to the losers bracket.
SoloMid were not disheartened by this loss and went on to oust Dignitas, Golden Guardians, Cloud9, and Team Liquid from the bracket before facing off against FlyQuest in the playoff final. The series ended 3-2 in favor of TSM who lifted their seventh LCS title and earned North America’s top seed at Worlds.
The Roster
Top Lane – Sergen “Broken Blade” Çelik
Broken Blade will be making his first trip to Worlds in 2020. He was listed as the 12th best top laner in our Worlds ranking, which is surprisingly high. The top laner has earned a reputation for performing well in the Spring Split before falling off in the summer in the LCS.
TSM’s top lane talent will have a task on his hands to get the better of high-quality top laners like Fnatic’s Bwipo and Gen.G’s Rascal during the group stage.
Jungle – Mingyi “Spica” Lu
Spica is another newcomer to the Worlds stage and has a fantastic opportunity to shine and keep his place on the TSM roster for the 2021 season.
He’s a middle of the pack jungler in the LCS but rated as the third-best in terms of assists per game (6.78) in the Summer Split. Spica also possesses one of the better champion pools in North America with nine unique champions played through the course of the split including a mix of tanks and carries.
Mid Lane – Søren “Bjergsen” Bjerg
The face of TSM returns to Worlds for the fifth time in his career. This time he enters it after a strong Summer Spilt that saw him named the first team All-Pro mid laner in the LCS, as well as the runner-up for LCS MVP.
This strong showing earned him the number seven ranking of mid laners heading into Worlds. Look for Bjergsen to be the carry TSM needs to make it out of groups.
AD Carry – Yiliang “Doublelift” Peng
Doublelift rarely misses the World Championship. He will be making his seventh appearance in 2020 having qualified for the tournament in each of the last six seasons. The question remains, can he make it out of groups?
Doublelift is rated 17th on our list of the best ADCs heading to Worlds which is troublesome if TSM wants to play through the bot lane. And with the top ADC in the tournament in Ruler in his group, it could be easy for Doublelift to be an afterthought.
Support – Vincent “Biofrost” Wang
This will be Biofrost’s third World Championship appearance after reaching the tournament with TSM in 2016 and 2017. His 2020 season has had its ups and downs as he was named in the third All-Pro team during the Spring Split but failed to make the top three in the summer.
Biofrost was also briefly benched for Treatz this past split, though, with a familiar duo partner in Doublelift, the TSM bot lane should be ready to take on the world’s best.
Next. Ranking and Rating All the Mid Laners at Worlds. dark
90/50/10 Predictions
90% odds that… Team SoloMid fans blame the jungler for the team’s failures.
Spica’s World Championship debut has the potential to be a disappointing one if TSM fans continue to flame their jungler for every poor result or sub-par performance. This combined with the organization’s tendency to swap junglers on a yearly basis puts an enormous amount of pressure on the 18-year-old’s shoulders.
50% odds that… Team SoloMid qualify for the knockout stage.
Optimistically, TSM have a 50% chance of finishing in the top two in Group C and reaching the knockout stage of the tournament. Their competitors are Fnatic and Gen.G, a team that struggled in the Summer Split and a team nowhere near as fearsome as their rivals from the LPL.
This gives TSM an excellent chance of making it out of groups if they pick up a few results against the expected top two.
10% odds that… Team SoloMid face Rogue in the knockout stage.
It’s unlikely but possible. Rogue showed their quality in the LEC and are more than capable of qualifying for the knockout stage. Team SoloMid just have to get the better of either Fnatic or Gen.G and they will also qualify.
TSM vs. Rogue has been hyped up by western League of Legends fans for over a year after LEC viewers claimed that a dismal 10th place Rogue could beat a middling TSM roster in 2019. The highly-anticipated match-up could finally happen on the Worlds stage if both sides make it out of their respective groups.