WBG Crisp: “We still have some things to adjust”

Following their win against MAD Lions, I had the opportunity to talk to WBG Crisp about the series, the Worlds meta, and future goals.

WBG Crisp – one last series to qualify for the Knockout stage

Chinese team Weibo Gaming advances to the last round of the Worlds 2023 Swiss Stage after their second win against European representative MAD Lions. The LPL #4 seed were able to meet the expectations, even though Game 1 was much tougher than the team would’ve probably wanted, as enemy mid laner Nisqy was fed on Sylas. That said, Crisp looked collected when asked about whether they felt under threat in that situation:

In the first game, we got the champions we wanted, and I think we played well. Sylas did put some pressure on us, but we believed in our team composition. We knew that if we played well and didn’t make mistakes, we would’ve been able to win because Sylas is a champion who needs to go in. And with Kalista in our composition, it was challenging for them to deal with her.

I also asked whether the team made any special adjustments after Game 1, especially considering the dominant performance in the second game:

We didn’t make any special adjustments, Daeny (WBG head coach) just said to take it slow. He told us we should play conservatively when it’s time do so: no need to rush and we just should have tried try to force the opponents into a mistake.

Even though Crisp had two solid games on Renata Glasc, landing game-changing ultimates in the teamfights, the player felt like he could do a bit better:

I would rate myself a 7 out of 10. I made some mistakes in the first and second games. If I could handle those better, I might have scored higher.

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Talking about the meta and the new Swiss round

So far, Crisp has only played Leona and Renata at Worlds. I ended up questioning whether he liked the support meta:

I think this meta is not hard to adapt to. The popular champions in this meta like Alistar, Rell, and Bard are ones I can play so there isn’t much pressure.

That said, he did say that the new format forces them to prepare more due to not knowing which team to face next.

In the previous format, you would know all your opponents in advance. In the Swiss round, you don’t know your opponents until the draw, so you need to prepare more.

Speaking of next opponents, Crisp hopes to face one of the weaker teams in the next round so it will be easier for the team to advance:

At the moment, I don’t want to face the stronger teams from Group 2. I think we’ll meet them in the later stages. Since the next match is crucial, I hope to face a slightly weaker team because I don’t think our team’s form is at its best. We still have some things to adjust, and we need more time to improve.

Among the teams and players he was most impressed with, Crisp instantly mentioned Gen.G Delight and JDG Missing, the two support players that have already advanced to the next round.

A look back on his own year

Even though the World Championship isn’t over yet, I asked Crisp about his year overall and the outlook for his own future:

I feel that my form has been quite good this season, but there are still some mistakes, mostly due to the pressure that comes with playing in these competitions. When I’m pressured by the opponents, I feel like my decision-making and actions can be affected, leading to less-than-optimal performance. So my goal is to improve in that regard.

Stress and pressure are something LoL pros face every day throughout their entire season. I was curious to know whether Crisp had a particular way or practice to de-stress. While he said he doesn’t really have something in particular, he believes he made a lot of progress in terms of mentality this season:

Even when we lose, my mood within the team is relatively good, so currently, I rarely let emotional issues affect me.

Before rounding off the interview, I popped a question about Crisp’s favorite hair color among the ones he had over the past few years. When asked about it, he didn’t really give a specific answer:

I don’t have a particular favorite hair color. I mainly choose the one I want at the time. To me, it doesn’t make much of a difference whether I dye my hair or not.

With two days of matches left before the end of the swiss stage round 4, WBG will have a bit of time to prepare before discovering who they will be facing next.

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