siuhy: "We want to prove that we are capable of being much more than we are right now"

The Polish player reflected on MOUZ NXT's run in WePlay Academy League Season 2 and his individual progress as an in-game leader.

MOUZ NXT once again proved to be the strongest Academy League team, winning the LAN finals in Kyiv without dropping a match. In the final series, the European mixture bested NAVI Junior, the only squad that managed to take a map from them throughout the whole season.

Shortly after hoisting the trophy, Kamil "⁠siuhy⁠" Szkaradek sat down with HLTV to talk about what has changed since their run in the first season, the toughest opponents in the league, and goals for the next year.

In the interview, the Pole insisted that his team hasn't reached its peak yet, as he believes that they can display an even higher level of play after back-to-back victories in the WePlay tournaments.

You've done it again, MOUZ NXT are two-time Academy League champions. Was it easier this time?

I wouldn't say so, I think it was harder. But we've also improved a lot. I think as individuals we came in much stronger than last season, and the opponents were also much stronger. Just looking at Young Ninjas or NAVI Junior, they've improved a lot, but we were ready for it. We feel really strong right now as individuals and as a team, we've been working every day since the first season. I think that's what brought us great results.

Which team do you think put up the toughest fight against you throughout the whole season?

I think it would have to be NAVI Junior, but it was really tough between them and Young Ninjas. We were ready for both of them. No matter what happens, no matter what opponent, we stayed coherent and just played our own game that we knew was working for us. No matter the opponent, we are not scared of anyone right now; we prepared for them just as much.

When I spoke to ztr from Young Ninjas, he told me that they have a good way of not giving m0NESY as much impact as he usually gets. Did you prepare anything for him in particular?

Specifically just for him, no. Just in our own playstyle that we have, it just works really well that we counter those types of plays, those types of players. I'm not really sure what ztr's counter was because m0NESY dropped 32 kills against them [on Mirage].

Our counter is to just play our own game. We know what's good for us, we focus on that and not on the opponent.

You are the caller of this team, and you've been pretty successful so far. Have you always been a caller?

No, this team is the first time I've been main IGLing. Before that, I played for Izako Boars, where I did have the opportunity to IGL for some of the rounds. For example, I called on the CT side sometimes, and then the roles changed and I called sometimes on both sides, but it was a bit shaky here and there. Just every time I got the opportunity to call, I would just take it.

I really enjoyed it, and also I had a great background with me. I played with TOAO and Hyper, which are really known Polish players, and they are known for their IGL skills as well. I've learned a lot from them, so thank you to them. Probably, without them, I wouldn't be here right now. Like I said, this is my first time being a full-time IGL on all maps and both sides, and I think it's going pretty well.

So you are committed to this role, right? Do you see your future as an IGL in CS?

Right now, yes. I don't plan on changing it. I feel comfortable, my team is feeling comfortable, so no plans on changing.

Who is your MVP of this event? Who do you think has had the most impact in your team?

I can't pick one guy for the MVP because I think the whole team played great. Every game a different person showed up, every game the whole team played great. It's really hard to pick one, but I'm really proud of xertioN. To be playing on a stage like this and performing the way he is, I think he deserves the credit. I'm really proud of him.

In our previous interview, your coach Dennis [sycrone] told me that your playstyle reminds him of the playstyle of hampus. Do you have any players in particular, demos of which you like to study?

I've always been a fan of karrigan, I've always followed him since the early days. Maybe now I kind of fell off with following his gameplay, but I try to base my game more on how I approach the game, how I want to play it, instead of looking at someone else. Personally, I think that if you make up your gameplay by yourself, then you are more comfortable and you know exactly what's happening here and there, on the other side of the map. If you just copy someone, you don't know the concept of it. You don't know why certain things happen, and it can just get messy in the game.

Who do you think can challenge you next season? Is it going to be the same teams: NAVI and NIP?

It depends. All teams have a lot of time to improve; they've been improving every season. Compared to last season, they were tougher opponents this time. It all comes down to hard work and how they work for it, we will just see in the results. Right now, it's too hard to tell who will be the toughest opponent and who will surprise us the most. Maybe there will be new teams coming up to LAN, I'm excited for that.

There is no doubt that this year is the best year in your career. But what are your goals for the next year?

Like I said in the interview on the stage, our goal is not to reach some type of ranking. We are focusing on ourselves every day. Our goal is to improve as individuals and as a team. We just want to show our best every day, and we want to prove that we are capable of being much more than we are right now. We don't focus on the rankings, we don't focus on the other teams or whoever we play against, we just try to stay humble, focus on ourselves, and improve every day.