League of Legends AD carry Yiliang "Doublelift" Peng is an incredibly renowned player for his incredible mechanical skill and great teamwork. Now, he's reportedly going back to his former stomping grounds – Team SoloMid.
In a first report from ESPN via Travis Gafford, with a follow-up article from Jacob Wolf, sources have confirmed that Doublelift will head back to Team SoloMid, but should he? An important note to make is that within the report, Jacob mentions:
"Liquid received additional interest from multiple teams within the league for Doublelift's contract rights, according to sources, but Doublelift chose TSM over other options. Doublelift was intimately involved in the process of choosing which team he wanted to go to."
With a declined comment from both Team Liquid and Team SoloMid, it will be no surprise to see an announcement sometime soon, especially considering the LCS Spring Split Series is over, and potential trades are allowed to happen. Should this trade happen, Doublelift would replace Kasper "Kobbe" Kobberup, who joined Team SoloMid in November after his League of Legends World Championship run finished with Splyce.
A place of comfort
It seemed like Doublelift would never leave Team SoloMid, especially after he departed from CLG in 2016 to join TSM. He very quickly became the name and face for the team and was especially known for his trash-talking in and out of interviews.
It must be noted that this comfort comes with huge success. When on Team SoloMid, Doublelift accumulated multiple accolades, winning two League Championship Series titles in 2016 and 2017.
Lacking motivation
I'm benched because I had no motivation until very recently. Being sick and unable to compete gave me my passion back, but too late. I'm sorry towards every one of my teammates and I'll be working from now on to regain their trust.
— Yiliang Peng (@Doublelift1) March 4, 2020
"Being sick and unable to compete gave me my passion back, but too late"
The response was overwhelmingly positive from the community as for anyone, especially in Doublelift's position, to admit he had lost motivation isn't easy. In terms of current active esports professionals, no one gives it their all like Doublelift does, so we can toss any ideas of him being burned out right out the window.
Honesty, self-awareness, and TSM
With his illness and lack of motivation, you can be sure the person who's most upset here is Doublelift. Being benched is never fun, being unwell is never fun and so you have a deadly combination that's enough to give even the most motivated person a negative mindset.
What many outlets are not discussing is that Doublelift had multiple offers from various teams but still chose Team SoloMid above all, even being heavily involved in the process of the decision. Considering Team SoloMid is the second team Doublift saw success with, it's no surprise that he's comfortable returning there, especially if the offer is right. Speaking of career success, here are just some of Doubelift's highlights.
Career highlights and awards
- 7x LCS Champion (Summer 2015, Summer 2016, Summer 2017, Spring 2018, Summer 2018, Spring 2019, Summer 2019)
- LCS Most Valuable Player (Summer 2018)
- LCS Finals MVP (Spring 2019)
- 5x LCS All-Star (2013-2016, 2018)
- 5x LCS All-Pro 1st-Team (Summer 2016, Summer 2017, Summer 2018, Spring 2019, Summer 2019)
- 1000 Career-Kill Club
Should Doublelift return to Team SoloMid?
The short answer is that yes, he should. He'll make his way back and look to rekindle what he lost during the Spring Split Series. Knowing Doubleift's ambition and hard-work ethic, he'll want to get back in and make an immediate impact on the team, and no doubt he will. He's still got a long way before retiring and so much more to offer as a professional League of Legends player.
Wherever you go Peter, we look forward to your bounceback in the Summer Split. Keep your head up and don't lose that motivation! For everything else League of Legends, keep it right here, with EarlyGame.
