Sayaplayer’s upcoming release brings an end to his stint in T1 that dates back to October 2022.
SOUTH KOREA – Ha “Sayaplayer” Jung-woo has announced that he will be a free agent soon, ending an almost two-year stint with T1. This move is part of a broader wave of changes for the team, which has also seen Daniel “Rossy” Abedrabbo and Dakota “Stunner” MacLeod leave after the conclusion of Stage 2.
With his impending free agency, Sayaplayer has added that he is open to offers from teams across all regions. His fluency in Korean, English, and basic Japanese makes him a versatile candidate, including for potential opportunities with Japanese teams.
Sayaplayer rejoined T1 in October 2022, shortly after the organization was named a VCT Partner Team in the Pacific region. This move at the time also marked his return to Asia following a season with The Guard in North America. T1’s all-Korean roster made a strong impression in their inaugural VCT Pacific year, finishing third in the league and earning spots in both international events: Masters Tokyo and Champions Los Angeles.
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T1 decided to shift to an international-speaking roster for the 2024 season despite their convincing VCT Pacific debut. This change led to the departure of three members while retaining half of the team, including Sayaplayer. Daniel “Rossy” Abedrabbo and Kevin “xccurate” Susanto were brought in as the new members from outside of Korea, along with Ham “iZu” Woo-joo.
Despite a strong showing at the KICKOFF event early in the year, T1 struggled throughout the Regular Season of Stage 1 and 2, finishing with a 4-6 record.
Their 2-4 record in Stage 1 was enough to advance to the playoffs and ultimately reach VCT Masters Shanghai. However, qualifying for VCT Champions Seoul proved challenging in Stage 2 due to the carryover record from the previous stage, ultimately ending their season in seventh place.
Individually, Sayaplayer was one of the top performers in Stage 2, ranking just behind Khalish “d4v41” Rusyaidee among the top 10 players, with an average VLR rating of 1.18 for his last four matches with T1. He also delivered a solid performance in Stage 1, where he was the team’s second-highest-rated player behind Rossy, though his rating fell slightly below the average.
As previously mentioned, the 25-year-old has stated that he is considering all his options and is open to talking to teams and organizations interested in his services. “I’ve learned a lot this year. Thank you to all the fans who stood by us through it all,” Sayaplayer tweets.
T1 now have:
- 🇰🇷 Ham “iZu” Woo-joo
- 🇰🇷 Kim “stax” Gu-taek
- 🇮🇩 Kevin “xccurate” Susanto
- 🇰🇷 Lee “Carpe” Jae-hyeok
- 🇰🇷 Yoon “Autumn” Eu-teum (Head coach)
- 🇺🇸 Jacob “Daeda” Hale (Coach)
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Cover photo courtesy of Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games
