Polish Ninjas in Pyjamas player Kacper “xKacpersky” Gabara left a very harsh public comment about the tournament after the team’s elimination from XSE Pro League Guangzhou 2026. In his post, he admitted that he personally had played the event very poorly, but at the same time made it clear that the main relief for him right now was that the team was finally done with everything that had been happening at this tournament.
And the context here really matters. NiP finished the Swiss stage with a 1:3 record, beat only Luminosity, but lost to 3DMAX, Alliance, and BIG, which left them in 12th–14th place. Against the backdrop of such a result, an emotional reaction after elimination would have looked normal even without further explanation, but xKacpersky’s wording came out far harsher than a typical post about a failed tournament.
This was not just a post after a defeat
The most interesting part of this message is that xKacpersky did not try to completely remove responsibility from himself. On the contrary, he directly wrote that he had played “terribly individually,” meaning he openly acknowledged his own weak performance. That is exactly why the second part of his message — about the team finally being done with “this shit” that was happening at the tournament — lands so strongly.
When a player first takes blame on himself and only then sharply goes after the event itself, it sounds less like a basic excuse after elimination and more like a serious signal. In essence, he made it clear that for him the problem was not only NiP’s poor play, but also the overall experience of being at XSE Pro League. That already hits not the sporting result, but the organizers’ reputation.
Why these words immediately became resonant
The problem for the tournament is that this criticism did not emerge in a vacuum. HLTV had already written that the first day of XSE Pro League dragged on because of long technical issues, and that the opening Swiss round ended after 3:00 a.m. local time. That was already a serious warning sign for the whole event.
On the second day, the situation also did not look normal. HLTV specifically noted that the matches took place amid further delays and technical problems, and on the third day the tournament once again ran deep into the night — so much so that the final match ended only after 4:00 a.m. local time. So xKacpersky’s post reads not as an isolated emotional outburst, but as a comment that fits into an already documented background of problems surrounding XSE Pro League.
NiP had a poor start, but survived for only one more day
NiP’s tournament path also helps explain the level of emotion. The team opened the event with a 14:16 loss to 3DMAX, then took a very heavy blow in the match against Alliance, where they lost 3:13, and only after that managed to stay alive in the tournament thanks to a BO3 win over Luminosity.
But the full comeback never happened. In the elimination match against BIG, Ninjas in Pyjamas lost the series 1:2, after which they officially ended their run in Guangzhou. It was exactly after that that xKacpersky’s post appeared — with a mix of self-criticism, irritation, and a clear promise that the team has to look better at future events.
What specific problems he meant is still unclear
It is important here not to build in things that the player did not explicitly say. In his message, xKacpersky did not explain exactly what he meant by “this shit.” He did not spell out whether he meant the technical side, scheduling, living conditions, communication with admins, or something else. So on the level of facts, the only correct thing to say right now is this: he left a very negative assessment of the overall tournament experience.
But even without detail, that is already a strong reputational hit. Because when a participant in a major LAN tournament with a $1,000,000 prize pool publicly speaks in this tone after being eliminated, the conversation automatically shifts from “how the team played” to “what is wrong with the tournament itself.” And that is exactly the main risk for XSE Pro League right now.
Why this is a bad signal for XSE Pro League
XSE Pro League Guangzhou 2026 is positioned as a major international tournament in China, with 16 teams, a full Swiss stage, playoffs, and a serious prize pool. Events of this scale are supposed to be built around matches, favorites, and sporting storylines. But when a large part of the discussion revolves around delays, technical issues, and sharp player posts, that is an entirely different information frame.
This looks especially painful at the start of a tournament cycle that should have been establishing itself as an important point on the calendar. If similar signals start coming from other participants as well, XSE risks gaining the image not of a prestigious big event, but of a tournament where organizational problems consume everything else. And in that case, even a good team list or a strong bracket no longer saves the overall impression. This is a conclusion that follows from the already documented delays, technical problems, and the public reaction of one of the participants.
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For NiP, it is now important to answer with play, not words
For Ninjas in Pyjamas themselves, this story is also unpleasant, but for a different reason. On one hand, the team received sympathy from part of the audience because one of its players directly hinted at a problematic tournament experience. On the other hand, xKacpersky honestly admitted that he had played the event poorly, and NiP’s results in Guangzhou really were weak even without adjusting for the chaos around the tournament.
That is exactly why the best response for NiP now is not continuing a public conflict, but delivering a strong performance next time. And xKacpersky, in essence, said that too: the team has to show better play and better results at the next events. So the final message turned out to be a double one: harsh criticism of the tournament, but without trying to fully hide behind it from sporting responsibility.
