Following an impressive victory over Team Heretics, Saif Sayf Jibraeel from Team Vitality opened up in an interview about the recent passing of his grandfather. This personal loss has coincided with the busiest and most intense point of the season, contributing to a sense of growing exhaustion during a chaotic playoffs run.
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Sayf’s exceptional performance in the lower bracket final, boasting a remarkable 73/49/15 KDA across four maps, was deemed as “okay” by his own standards. Despite his success, he humbly stated that he believes he can always play better, all while acknowledging the weight of his recent personal loss.
“I start a bit slow sometimes, but to be honest, it’s been a lot recently with everything. My grandpa passed away and we keep playing game after game after game after game, and I have no time to breathe, so it’s been a lot. So I’m surprised that I can even play.”
Reflecting on his exhaustion, Sayf described his performance against Heretics as purely instinctive, driven by reflexes honed through extensive gameplay. This led to Vitality securing a spot in the VCT EMEA Stage 2 final against formidable opponents, Fnatic.
“At some point it becomes that you’re no longer consciously thinking about things. It becomes your natural instinct to do things. It’s like your body’s not even trying, but it does it anyway. It’s automatic – you see something happening, you’re instantly reacting to it, but it’s not really a conscious effort.
“It’s more like my reflexes are kicking in from playing for so much. I’m playing so long, so it’s always like ‘bam, bam, bam’, insta-reacting. And that’s because I’ve seen so many scenarios before that, and these scenarios keep repeating themselves because I played for so much and that’s what’s happening.”
Vitality’s Challenge Against Fnatic
Looking ahead to the final set against Fnatic, Sayf acknowledged that Vitality will be at a disadvantage due to fatigue, having played continuously without rest. In comparison, Fnatic had an extra day to recuperate after securing their spot earlier. Nevertheless, Sayf expressed hope for a competitive match and potentially a victory, emphasizing the importance of team unity and resilience.
“Vitality has been playing for so long and we have fewer rest days than Fnatic, of course, and they are a hard team to play against. So obviously tomorrow we’re going to be a bit tired, but if we just troop up and stick together, hopefully the best outcome happens.
“[My] best prediction is hopefully we win, otherwise I just want it to be a really close game.”
Photo by Michal Konkol/Riot Games
After an initial setback against Team Heretics, Vitality’s strong comeback in subsequent maps was attributed to a lack of warm-up before the series. Sayf explained that due to exhaustion, the team decided to forgo their usual pre-series scrim, with Icebox serving as an impromptu warm-up match. This strategic choice may have impacted their performance in the first map.
“It’s a BO5 and we didn’t warm up before this. Usually we have a warm-up scrim before we play, but for today, since it’s so many games being played, we thought that it’s better if we just don’t warm up. Icebox became the warm-up scrim instead. Everyone was a bit tired. So yeah, I guess that’s why [we lost].”
Despite being a prominent player in EMEA and qualifying for his second Stage 2 final in a row, Sayf hinted at the possibility of retirement. When questioned about how his recent strong performance impacts this decision, Sayf maintained that retirement remains an option if the game stops being enjoyable for him.
“I’m playing for fun and if I just don’t think it’s fun, I’m not going to play. That’s all there is to it.”
Looking Towards VCT Champions
Advancing to the final stages of playoffs guarantees Vitality a spot at VALORANT Champions Seoul later this year, irrespective of the outcome against Fnatic. Sayf expressed optimism about their chances at the tournament, highlighting the importance of team cohesion and a positive environment.
“I think Champions is good for us because, at the end of the day, it’s not about having the best names on paper in your team. It’s about how we form these different people in the team to become one unit and how we find a good space and make a great environment between us. And right now I feel like we’ve achieved that and if we keep building on that into Champions, we can do a lot of damage.”
Finally, when asked about the coaching changes that contributed to Vitality’s improved form, Sayf credited former head coach Salah Salah Barakat while noting that current head coach Harry Gorilla Mepham is currently a better fit for the team’s dynamics.
“I really like Salah. I think he’s a good person and obviously it didn’t work out in the way it should have. I think there’s a big contrast in terms of how they approach coaching, both of them, and what fits this team more is how Gorilla is coaching right now and that’s all I can say about it.”
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