'World' rising star Noh plays key role in Guangdong victory

Guangdong Freaks defeated heavy favorites and rivals Live Sandbox in an ace decider at the KDL Preseason 1 Team Competition Quarterfinals Pool on April 19. With the win, Guangdong Freecs won their third straight game and moved into first place with a 3-0 record, a +5 set goal differential and a +9 round goal differential. While Aura is closely behind with a 3-1 record, a +5 set goal differential and a +15 round goal differential, Guangdong Freecs looked a bit more in form with the win over Live Sandbox.

And at the center of it all was Noh "World" Jun-hyun. Noh has been playing well in team and individual matches since the Drift, and is also the team's captain. Most encouraging was his victory over 'Neil' in the rib sandbox and ace decider. Many people predicted that it would be Lee "Zzz" Jae-hyuk or Yoo "Spear" Chang-hyun, who are generally known for their speed, but it was Noh "Jun-hyun" and his opponent was Neil. Noh had won the individual title last year, and in his victory interview, Noh called 'Neil' one of the best players in terms of speed, and he won with a great drive against 'Neil'.

According to Guangdong Freecs head coach Choi Max-seop, Noh has taken on a new role as captain in 2023 and has shown that he can take responsibility and lead by example. "He practices more than his teammates and tries to do well," Choi said. In-game, he realizes that he lacks decision-making on item play, and he's trying to learn a lot by giving feedback to the rest of the team," Choi said.

Noh also explained his decision to play in the Reveal Sandbox and the Ace Decider. "Originally, I made the decision based on the performance of the day, but I realized through communication with the players that it was wrong. So I've been making decisions on the spot, taking into account the players' confidence, their psychological state at the time, whether they have a lot of experience and victories in the Ace Decider, and their opponents.

The ace decider is always a pressure match, so I don't tell them to win unconditionally. In the case of this match, Noh Jun-hyun said that it was okay for him to play, and he showed his confidence, so he played." He also talked about the current team atmosphere. "The atmosphere is very good, and although we have players with different personalities, there are no complaints during practice. We respect each other's play and fill in the gaps. We are currently at about 80 percent, and if we can improve on our mistakes and itemization decisions, we will be able to show a higher level of form and teamwork," he said.

Meanwhile, 스포츠토토 the Guangdong Freaks will play a team match against Planet on the 22nd.