The 2020 League of Legends season has been nothing short of tumultuous so far for Team Liquid fans, especially over the last two weeks. The team recently decided to bench star AD carry Doublelift, citing motivation issues as the primary reason for his absence. After losing two games in a row, however, it looks like the 26-year-old might be making a return to the big stage tonight.
Two weeks ago, Doublelift was replaced by Liquid Academy’s Edward “Tactical” Ra after he came down with laryngitis before the weekend’s games. The rookie ADC played surprisingly well in his stead and ultimately helped the team find a victory against TSM.
In that time, Doublelift also came under fire due to his comments about the Spring Split. He said that he should’ve held himself to a higher standard, but “didn’t care” about the split until his team started losing a lot. It was a sentiment that was widespread in the League community but was considered a weak mentality by former pros and analysts.
This weekend’s game against CLG might have been the last straw for Tactical as starter, though. Losing against the last-placed team in the league isn’t acceptable for Liquid. Although Tactical wasn’t the main reason why his team lost, it’s understandable for the team to want more practice and experience with its core roster.
It also might seem a bit premature to switch out Doublelift and Tactical one match into his second week, but there are only two more weeks in the regular season. Liquid can’t afford to lose any more matches since they’re tied for sixth place in the standings and could drop out of playoff contention at any moment.
Liquid fans are likely hoping that this situation has helped motivate Doublelift to play at an even higher level than before. At the same time, Tactical has shown glimpses of greatness that shouldn’t be ignored by the team and the rest of the league. He had an impressive debut, and as a resident NA ADC, he might get more traction as a possible starter for a team in the future.
You can watch Doublelift in action with the rest of Liquid when they head into battle tonight on Monday Night League at 7:30pm CT.
