Trilingual Siti Nurizati Breaks Into Male-dominated E-sports Commentating

KUALA LUMPUR, July 25 (Bernama) -- The career of an e-sports commentator is typically dominated by men in Malaysia, but Siti Nurizati Jefree has broken that mold with her unique talents.

Fluent in Malay, Chinese and English, the 23-year-old, who hails from Mersing, Johor, has opened doors for the multicultural society in Malaysia to become acquainted with the e-sports field, bringing more diversity and inclusivity to the industry.

According to Siti Nurizati, also known by her moniker Reezpiupiu, her career as an e-sports commentator began in 2020 through the video game Mobile Legend Bang Bang (MLBB) when her younger brother asked her to manage his team.

"At that time, I actually didn't want to because I knew nothing about MLBB. But because I was curious about the game he was playing, I agreed to be the team manager.

"After becoming the team manager, I started getting involved in playing MLBB, and after a few months of watching them play, I asked them if they wanted to go 'live', and they said hiring outsiders was expensive. So, I offered to do it for free, provided they helped me find videos on how to commentate.

"From there, I started watching past MLBB tournaments and learning how they commentated. It was tough at first, but after learning slowly, I found that I really enjoyed it," she told Bernama recently.

Siti Nurizati, realising her talent, didn't look back after joining an open audition for the 12th season of the MLBB Professional League (MPL) Malaysia last year.

She said she was surprised to be selected as an MLBB commentator, given that the individuals who participated in the audition were not just anyone—everyone there was male.

After a year as an MLBB e-sports commentator, she is now trusted by the game's developer, Moontoon, to commentate matches in Mandarin, thanks to her fluency in the language since childhood.

She said that although she was initially nervous about commentating in Mandarin, she accepted the challenge and went on to win the Mandarin Commentator Award by the MLBB Academy League Malaysia (MAL) this year.

"I have been able to speak Mandarin since I was young, and I even took the subject during my SPM (exam). So, when given this opportunity, it only comes once, and I felt it would be a waste to pass it up," said the part-time Bachelor of Management (Finance) student at Universiti Sains Malaysia.

Commenting on the challenges of being an e-sports commentator, she said it is not easy as it requires extensive knowledge of the game being commented on.

"Being an e-sports commentator means we have to constantly learn and stay updated with current developments because the game's playing style is always changing.

"If we make a mistake while commentating, we will definitely be criticised by the viewers," she said.

She hopes that her fluency in Malay, Chinese, and English can unite the multicultural society in Malaysia through the e-sports platform, thereby helping to advance the industry.

"We want to attract more people to get involved in e-sports because this industry has great potential to grow. So, I hope that with my skills, I can encourage more people to get involved in this industry," she said.

-- BERNAMA