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Tomorrow's matchup sees the top seeds from Korea and China face off in what is anticipated to be the highest-profile match of the quarter-finals at Worlds, behind Chovy, two of the top mid-laners throughout season 14 face off in a matchup that is worthy of more than a semi-final placement. The HLE versus BLG game has the potential to become a timeless classic at Worlds.
Brief Match-Up History
It is important to highlight that Knight has been beaten by Zeka only twice in his career, with an impressive record of 8 victories out of 10 matches. It can be fair to assume that Knight had the upper hand over Zeka during his time in the LPL.
Indeed, during the LPL Summer 2021, Knight delivered his most outstanding performance statistically when facing Zeka, achieving an impressive score of 12/0/7.
Knight added 2 further assists after TES camped BLG, Zeka's former team's nexus: China LPL Summer 2021 BLG vs TES Game 1, Week 6, Day 4.
During the 2022 Worlds group stage encounter, each team emerged victorious in one game, and Knight's Top Esports secured the win in their final meeting.
With 4 consecutive LPL titles, Knight stands alone as the only player to achieve this feat, sharing the record of 5 titles with Xiaohu and Clearlove. Knight's four-peat success is matched only by Gen.G's Chovy. Simply put, Knight has domestically dominated in the Chinese competitive League of Legends for the past 5 years.
Zeka, on the other hand, formerly of BLG, has had an unorthodox rise to prominence over the past 2 years. He only holds 2 titles to his name, the LCK Summer 2024, and, the holy grail, Worlds from 2022 in what could be considered the biggest underdog run that League of Legends has ever seen with DRX since season 2. Since leaving the LPL for the LCK, Zeka has made significant progress and is now a much-improved player compared to his LPL days.
Champion Pools
Taking the Worlds meta into consideration, both players have a number of overlapping champions within their arsenal. Yone is among the top two most-played champions for both Zeka and Knight, but due to its presence being above 90% this tournament, it would be a surprise if the champion makes it through the ban phase in the draft phase.
During the summer, Corki, Yone, and Tristana have consistently been the top 3 picks for both players, without a specific order. However, this data is not conclusive because Corki and Tristana received significant nerfs before the beginning of Worlds 2024. Yone is expected to face a permanent ban in the draft due to his dominating presence and priority.
Examining the yearly selection of mid laners reveals a distinct perspective. Certain champions like Taliah and Ahri are commonly favored by both teams and players, indicating their potential to be a high priority in drafting, the latter of which is Knight's all-time most-played champion with a win rate of almost 85% in 59 games. Zeka's Ahri should not be overlooked either which has a 78% win rate in 9 games this year, so the draft could be around securing Ahri for each player.
However, some champions are higher in the priority for the 2 mid laners. Judging how the meta has evolved at worlds. Knight's Orianna might make an appearance despite having a yearly win rate of 33%. Therefore, if HLE manages to force Knight on Orianna, it could give them an advantageous position to win the series.
Zeka, however, has had a lot of games on Smolder across the year with a respectable win percentage and has already played it twice at Worlds. Should HLE decide to go for a scaling composition, Zeka's Smolder might be brought into play.
Examining the most frequently chosen champions from Zeka and Knight provides a different perspective on the situation.
Knight's top 6 most-played champions of all time. Source: gol.gg
By examining this graph, Knight could opt for Syndra as a preferred choice. Syndra has already been featured in 5 matches at Worlds this year.
Zeka's top 6.
Zeka might choose to play his comfort pick, Akali, a champion he performed exceptionally well with during the 2022 World Championship.
One champion that has not been discussed yet is Sylas. With a flawless record of 100% in 6 games at Worlds, and considering that both Zeka and Knight have played him extensively, opting for a Sylas ban could be a strategic move for both players.
Solo & Champions Queue
Solo and Champions queue offers valuable data since scrim information is not accessible, making it the most up-to-date source for understanding what players are focusing on outside of scheduled practice sessions. Although the data collected from these queues alone may not provide a complete picture, when it is analyzed alongside the meta trends and the historical picks of both players, certain patterns can be seen.
Aurora has the highest presence at Worlds 2024, so it should come as no surprise that it is among Zeka and Knight's most-played champions of queueing. The champion has emerged as one of the top flex picks in the tournament, excelling in team fights and has a forgiving laning phase.
Aurora has a 94% presence at Worlds 2024
Zeka has been selecting Galio in the matchup and effectively countering Aurora's strong presence. The versatility of this pick allows it to be used flexibly in either the top or mid lane (and rarely in support roles).
Zeka opts for more of a tankier build in the matchup. Source: TrackingThePros Twitch.
Is it possible for HLE to let Aurora through the ban phase with the intention of testing the Galio counter-pick?
Upon reviewing Knight's match history, an interesting pick-up of Vex stands out.
Source: TrackingThePros Twitch
Vex is an intriguing choice because it effectively counters the top 6 champions frequently played by Zeka, all of which possess some form of dashes and blinks.
Vex thrives in these matchups due to her passive of fearing enemies and interrupting dashes. Throughout Knight's professional career, he has played in 13 matches on Vex and achieved a 69% win rate, demonstrating his proficiency with the champion when necessary.
Knight's top 3 most played champions in EU West solo queue. Source: Op.gg
Zeka has returned to picking his familiar Sylas choice in solo queue, which is currently his third most frequently used champion on his EU West account. He has won all 6 matches he has played with Sylas so far. From looking at both players' champion history, it would not come as a surprise to see this champion picked in the HLE vs BLG series tomorrow.
Zeka's top 3 most played champions in EU West solo queue. Source: op.gg
If Yone were to be permitted to proceed past the ban phase, it might involve a trade-off for Aurora.
HLE/BLG Performances so far
It is important to mention that neither team has been flawless at Worlds this year. BLG has surprisingly lost games to China's 3rd seed, LNG, and LPL killers T1. Following the defeat against T1, BLG made a change by bringing in their substitute jungler, Xun, in place of Wei. Despite facing difficulties against PSG Talon in the elimination round, this decision paid off as BLG managed to narrowly defeat G2 in the quarterfinal playoffs with a 2-1 series score. The question for the upcoming game is whether they will return to their Wei, who has shown consistency in the LPL, or opt to continue with Xun.
After a long in-game pause for a potential bug, BLG managed to close out the series against G2 2-1. Source: Lolesports
Although there have been rumors of internal issues within the BLG team, Xun doesn't appear to be a clear improvement over Wei. Bin and Elk's performances have propelled BLG into the quarter-finals.
Despite more positive results, it has been a similar story for HLE. After dismantling PSG Talon, they did not look convincing in the best-of-one against G2, nor in the best-of-three series against FLY. It is a concerning notion for HLE fans that if North American champions FLY did not get picked at gromp in game 1, HLE could have potentially lost the series. HLE finished the Swiss bracket 3-1, with their only loss being against Korean rivals, and Worlds favorites Gen.G in a rematch of the LCK final.
Gen.G defeated rivals HLE after a flank from Peyz's Twitch which shredded through HLE. Source: Lolesports
Throughout history, Knight has typically fared better against Zeka than vice versa. However, with BLG being out of sorts of late, HLE vs BLG could go either way. As the tournament progresses to the best-of-5 stage, it will reveal the true nature of each team as they get ready to compete against each other on the battlefield tomorrow.
References
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7VFdpldNIM https://lol.fandom.com/wiki/Knight_(Zhuo_Ding)
https://lol.fandom.com/wiki/Zeka_(Kim_Geon-woo)
https://gol.gg/players/player-stats/2906/season-S14/split-ALL/tournament-ALL/
https://gol.gg/players/player-stats/1270/season-S14/split-ALL/tournament-ALL/
https://www.twitch.tv/videos/2275814808?t=33h15m6s
https://www.twitch.tv/videos/2275814808?t=26h25m58s
https://www.op.gg/summoners/euw/asdfadsasdfads-1234
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