"I am at a stage in life where priorities have changed" - surajS

Reckoning Esports were narrowly cut out of their last match in their Skyesports Masters 2023 run by Medal Esports. Despite a strong start, Reckoning Esports did not make it through to the playoffs but have taken things in a positive light, evident from the atmosphere in their camp when we spoke to surajS, the IGL of Reckoning Esports. In a heartfelt interview, surajS stated his intention to step down from the game. Here's what he had to say about their match, tournament run and his future plans.

A dominant second half, can you talk us through Anubis?

"After our game against Revenant, we're just playing for fun. We haven't had any serious practice sessions since then and everyone is just focused on their thing, playing pugs and that's about it. Today was just about having fun, Ghost was juggling the AWP around, I was AWPing, TEMPER was AWPing and TEMPER was just feeling it, like- Suraj, I just want to go kill everyone. We didn't have any game plan, we just came in and played our game."

Do you think you could've turned things around if 1nhuman and m3wsu had joined you earlier?

"I think you already know the answer to that! We had the most pressure coming into this tournament and I'd just like to say that a lot of situations were not in our favor, circumstances weren't in our favor, but the resilience showed by the boys, their temperament and mentality has been brilliant. Yes we didn't win many games but that's not what winning is for me, it's about how you feel at the end of the day and none of us were sad or disheartened at the end of the day and we never blamed one another. Apart from circumstances revolving around the game, we had a lot going on in our personal lives as well. My health had taken a toll, TEMPER had some academic stuff and Ghost had some personal issues as well but nonetheless none of them complained. I've been together with these guys for 3 years and have been trying to build them up. Seeing them at this level is amazing."

What are your plans going forward from here?

"Now that's a tough one for me personally. I am going to be taking a step down from playing, I decided to do that last year and for me- my personal life is going really really well. Ghost, TEMPER and bryle were the reason I came into this tournament, I wanted to play it for them and they didn't have an IGL. Even till June I was uncertain on whether I should come back or not, but then we were at a stage where these guys didn't have a captain and they didn't want to play the tournament without me, likewise I didn't want them to miss out on such an opportunity, so I came in and played for them, a little bit was for myself too, not gonna lie. It was a big sacrifice for me to be here, I had to quit my job and now I'm gonna go back to my corporate life. Ghost and m3wsu will be sticking around, so you'll see a lot of them."

Sad to see you step down, but will we see you on the server in the near future again?

"I'm actually very glad because I am at a stage in life where priorities have changed, like family is a huge priority for me and situations are completely different. Its going to be an uphill climb, but I am excited for it and I am looking forward. There is always CS2, so let's see if something big happens and if I fall back into this mindset of wanting to play again, but for now- Adios!"