Park Sang-hyun Advances to ASL Season 21 Finals: Can He Achieve a Historic Back-to-Back Victory?

Translation result‘Soma’ Park Sang-hyun, who dropped only the first set to ‘Reta’ Shin Sang-moon to reach his second straight final, said he wants to win with an entertaining match as he pursues a consecutive title defense.

On the evening of the 11th at FreakUp Studio in Gangnam, Seoul, ‘Soma’ Park Sang-hyun beat ‘Reta’ Shin Sang-moon 4–1 in the first semifinal of Google Play ASL Season 21 to advance to the final.

Park said he had studied Shin’s key builds closely ahead of the match. He expected a two-base Spire build and prepared a counterplan. Because Shin often favors an early eight-barracks push, Park timed his scouting to confirm that plan and used a tailored response to seize the early momentum. He added that showing a Spire forced Shin to commit to air production, and the match played out as anticipated, preventing Shin from switching into a battlecruiser composition.

Park praised his overall game management but admitted some regret. “Most things went according to plan, but mistakes piled up in Game 3 and I dropped that map,” he said. He called Queens a difficult unit to handle and noted that with better micro accuracy he might have taken Game 3. He also explained his shift to Ultralisks: he had originally prepared a Hydralisk–Lurker combination, but the situation looked favorable in the moment, so he improvised. Aside from that match, he said, his plan largely worked.

With ‘Light’ Lee Jae-ho and ‘Flash’ Lee Young-ho still possible opponents in the final, Park said he hopes to meet Lee Young-ho. “He’s such a legendary player — just facing him would feel like a dream,” Park said, while acknowledging that Lee Jae-ho’s steadier style makes him the more likely finalist.

Asked to predict the final score, Park answered cautiously, saying he hasn’t begun specific preparations yet. Still, when asked for his hoped-for result, he smiled and said, “4–3. I want to win in an entertaining way.”

Park admitted this season has been mentally taxing. “Just thinking about the tournament made me tense, gave me chest tightness, and I had trouble sleeping,” he said. “But that’s part of being a competitor. I’ll accept the pressure and prepare hard over the next two weeks.”

On reaching back-to-back finals, he added, “I try to prepare seriously for every match. I didn’t get overly nervous at the venue, and I actually played better than in practice — that’s something I’ll give myself credit for.”

Closing the interview, Park said he hopes to be remembered as a professional. “I’m technically an amateur, but I prepare more seriously than anyone. Whoever makes the final, it should be a really fun match. Please look forward to it — I’ll repay your expectations with a good result,” he said.

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