KuroKy admitted why he actually stopped playing and became the coach of Nigma Galaxy

Kuro “KuroKy” Salehi Takhasomi revealed that he moved from the player’s position to the role of Nigma Galaxy coach because of serious health problems that he didn’t make public, and because of losing his motivation.

He told about it in an interview for OFFSTAGE.

“I’ll just tell the whole story, I guess. When the COVID pandemic started in 2020–2021, I was still playing in the team, and we were participating in online tournaments during the pandemic. We played well, finishing 2nd, 3rd and 4th places. I think the last online tournament I played in was EPICENTER — we lost in the finals to Secret. Then I took a break, a big one, like 6–7 months, because of health issues. A few years ago I mentioned that I have problems with my hands, which still are not solved. After the break and coming back everything felt really strange, the whole team, me as a player — it felt like we couldn’t make it work anymore”

The esports player said that his health problems actually started a long time ago, back in 2021. According to him, he has some issues with his hands, but he didn’t want to talk about it publicly or complain, since it didn’t make any sense. Besides, he admitted that soon he realized he had no motivation to play anymore, and started to see himself more as a coach rather than a player.

“Personally, I felt it was hard for me to play because of my health. I just didn’t want to go online and complain, what’s the point of that? I think there’s no need. So I extended my career for two more years, but honestly, I didn’t want to play anymore; I was already done 3–4 years ago. I love playing, I love competing, but you know, you get older, and thank God I achieved everything I wanted in Dota 2. There’s nothing left for me, especially now when TI’s prize pool got smaller, so I had no motivation. My health and all that, and also my team was burning out. Everyone started to feel tired or retire, so the next best step for me was to become a coach”

He explained that he already had the role of captain, so it wasn’t hard for him to switch to coaching duties. According to him, health, burnout, and age pushed him to make this decision. However, he believes that he still remains useful for the team, can share his experience, and help them reach new heights on the Dota 2 pro scene.