
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.