MidOne interview: "I haven't played in a while, and people have kind of forgotten about me."

We caught up with Yeik "MidOne" Nai Zheng just as MOUZ was about to enter the competition at PGL Wallachia Season 6.

This is MidOne's third participation in PGL Wallachia, but it is the first time he is an active player on his own team. He returns to competitive play under the MOUZ banner after nearly two years out of the spotlight. We were interested to find out what motivated him to return, what brought him to Europe and MOUZ, and how the period of retirement has changed him as a person and as a player.

Welcome to Bucharest. This isn't your first time here at PGL Wallachia, is it? You've been here before as a reserve player for Tundra, but how does it feel to come to the tournament with your own team?

I don't know if I have the words to express how good it feels.

You're back in competitive play after spending about two years out of the spotlight. May I ask what made you come back, why now and why with this particular team?

When I decided to retire, I said that I would retire from Dota, that I wouldn't touch the game anymore. But then Tundra asked me to play for them at PGL Wallachia Season 2 last year and then Season 4 earlier this year. Both times we placed third in the tournament, and that's when I realized that maybe I was still pretty good at the game. So after Wallachia earlier this year I decided to keep playing, and that's when I would say I fully got back into Dota, started playing seriously and started grindin'.

Joining MOUZ is a new chapter for you. What attracted you to this roster and this organization in particular?

I knew for a long time that if I ever got back into competitive play, I wanted to play in Europe rather than any other region, because I feel like the European style suits me better.

Honestly, I was lucky that MOUZ decided to play with me. I hadn't played for a long time, you know, and people had kind of forgotten about me. So when they asked me if I wanted to play in this lineup, I immediately said yes.

After leaving Team Secret and spending time in inactivity, what did you miss most about competing?

It may sound strange, but I missed the pressure that a tournament or game puts on you. I missed those moments when you have to make a decision that you know can change the course of the game; I missed the adrenaline of competing and playing. There's a certain feeling and a certain high that you get just by competing, and I missed that.

Every comeback comes with expectations - your own and society's. How do you deal with that pressure?

My way of dealing with it is to just stop thinking and just do it. I just focus on what's in front of me: the draft, the heroes, the game and the connection. I just keep playing, that's what I do.

Has your outlook as a player changed since you last played?

I'm not sure. I would say my character has changed. I think I'm very different from my old self. The way I act, the way I talk and the way I behave I think has changed a lot. That's what I've noticed about myself. I'd like to think I've become more mature, but as far as my perspective on the game, I'm not sure.

I think perspective, or the way you look at the game, is heavily influenced by patches. So I think the most important thing is personality. I'm more laid back now, I'm more open to talking to people, I care more about the people around me, the team and things like that.

At BLAST, I think I was told I was the oldest player and I thought, "Oh my God, is that true? Suddenly I'm the oldest now? Okay, I guess I am."

What can you say about the current pace of the competitive schedule? It's a very busy season. How are you coping with all the traveling and qualifiers you had to play at the beginning of the season?

I'm not going to lie, the qualifiers were tough in terms of schedule, there were really a lot of them. I didn't like the sectionals at all. It was too much and not fun. But I'm glad the events are ongoing. We have three tournaments this month alone, and I'm happy that I get to play all the time.

I'm a guy who hasn't played in a long time, so I don't feel any burnout. If anything, I'd like to play more. But that's just me, some of my teammates definitely want to rest.

Unfortunately, you start the group stage of PGL Wallachia Season 6 with two substitutes. Has that changed anything in terms of the goals and objectives you want the whole team to accomplish here?

I'm hoping that the three of us guys in the main roster can somehow improve our chemistry. I'd say that's the most important thing.

Well, I wish you good luck and I hope you can at least repeat your performance in Singapore. Thanks for taking the time to talk to us, and please don't retire anytime soon. Stay. Stay because we love watching you play. If you have anything to say to your fans at the end of our interview, please do so.

Thank you to the fans who have followed me since the beginning, and to those who stayed on my stream when I started grind again to come back. It's been a tough time, so thank you for supporting me, and I hope you continue to do so.

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