One of the two star players currently on medical leave from Astralis is set to return in August, according to AWPer Nicolai ‘device’ Reedtz.
Speaking on the HLTV Confirmed show on Twitch, device gave an update on the current situation with teammates Andreas ‘Xyp9x’ Højsleth and Lukas ‘gla1ve’ Rossander, who have both been on sick leave from the roster after suffering from burnout.
“We kind of knew gla1ve needed a break for a long time, it was just about timing it correctly and trying to help him cope with the stress and trying to find a solution where he could continue playing,” device explains when asked about the reasoning behind gla1ve’s decision. “But in the end we knew he was going to need a break – it’s been something that’s been going on for a while. That’s always been in the back end for a while now even when we were winning Majors and tournaments.”
The AWPer didn’t give much information on Xyp9x’s reason, but it’s clear the clutch minister isn’t quite as far down the road to recovery as gla1ve if their return dates are anything to go by.
“Gla1ve return is planned for August, Xyp’s return is not planned. That’s all I can say,” device says. “I don’t know when in August gla1ve will return, but it’s in August and I don’t think we have a certain date on Xyp.”
Burnout has become a real topic of discussion in recent weeks, and for good reason too. While taking prolonged breaks is becoming more and more acceptable in esports, device believes there are a lot of players out there who are afraid to ask for one.
“There are probably a lot of people out there who probably need a break but are afraid of losing their spot because of how the environment is,” he says. “You say you need a break, they have to sign another player and there’s no guarantee you’ll get back and that’s also a stress adding onto the pressure for us CS players.”
While Astralis’ performance has definitely taken a hit in recent weeks, it’s good that two of its players are able to get away from the stress of the game and recover in their own time.
