Down to Business


We're in the quarterfinals now, and the names in this lineup really speak for themselves. Each of these four players would be a worthy Starleague champion, two of them already are. It's also yet another Telecom clash between SKT and KT representatives. With SKT vastly underperforming in Proleague, maybe their players can boost the team's morale with individual performances before going into the Proleague playoffs.

Dark vs TY

(Z)Dark is still arguably the best Zerg in the world. Although Rogue has put up important wins recently, it's hard to argue with Dark's consistency. He may drop the occasional Bo1 in Proleague, but GSL and SSL have been quite comfortable for him. Still, he has to play what's arguably his worst match-up in TvZ. Losses to aLive, Maru, Bomber and Dream have tarnished his reputation against Terran a bit, but three of those were in fact Bo1s.

(T)TY comes into the match with a more fleshed out record against Zerg. At 72,5%, his TvZ remains strong. But watching his games in general recently, it feels as though TY is just slightly falling behind the very top players in the world - a category I would still put Dark in. Perhaps it's simply momentum going against him in his last few matches, but TY has lacked that critical oomph at times that would easily push him towards a championship.

If you take a closer look at his record, Dark is actually rather untested in TvZ, which could both work for or against him. He has played TY three times in LotV, winning all three encounters, though. History is on his side, and with Zerg recently receiving a buff against TY's favored early aggression, Dark might pull through here.


Stats vs Classic

Last time these two met in Starleague, (P)Classic went on to claim his title. He was arguably the best player in the world then, but he's fallen off a bit since. Legacy of the Void hasn't really been his game so far, it doesn't appear to be playing to his strengths. Classic was always a very intelligent player, capable of playing essentially any Protoss playstyle at a very high level. But with Protoss options and builds significantly decreased, he too has succumbed to standard play - and there are, quite simply, better players than him right now in that sort of game. His PvP has come with mixed results as well, Stats for example getting the better of him twice.

Speaking of the KT man, he's got a frightening PvP record. At nearly 79%, his only series loss has come against Myungsik and his shenanigans. Aside from that, (P)Stats has only lost two Bo1s this year, all the while beating up every top Protoss in the mirror. Zest, herO, sOs, Classic, Dear, Patience (yes, his current qualification for Blizzcon allows him to make this list) all fell to Stats this year, with very little to show for in return. And despite some rocky appearances recently, Stats' mirror match-up hasn't been a source of weakness for him at all. He's the favorite in this match for me.

If Classic wants a shot at a second Starleague title, he will have to step his game up to a level we know he's capable of. Stats should beat him, and quite comfortably at that, if they each play at the level they've displayed up to now.

Predictions:

(Z)Dark 3 - 2 (T)TY
(P)Stats 3 - 1 (P)Classic