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It’s also here! The first match of the Desert Vipers 2024 DP World ILT20 campaign is almost upon us.

At the time of recording this episode all the preparations are finished and now it’s just a case of one more sleep until the players head out to face the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders at the Dubai International Stadium.

So, with that first match so close, who better to speak with than Desert Vipers captain Colin Munro, who previews the game for us.

We spoke with Colin after the squad’s final practice session at the ICC Academy in Dubai Sports City and we discussed a variety of topics including:

·      the arrival of Sri Lanka duo Matheesha Pathirana and Wanindu Hasaranga with the pair flying in, in time for the final training session ahead of the side’s tournament opener; 

·      the possible opening batting combinations that the Vipers have; 

·      the chance for 18 year-old wicketkeeper Tanish Suri, who’ll make his Vipers debut behind the stumps in the absence of Azam Khan and Denesh Chandimal; 

·      and the prospect of coming up against a Knight Riders line-up including Sunil Narine, Andre Russell and David Willey.

All that and plenty more besides is in our interview with Colin.

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In this episode, after a training session two days out from the opening encounter of the tournament, against the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders at the Dubai International Stadium on January the 21st,  we speak with Vipers Head Coach James Foster.

We caught up with James after a session at the ICC Academy and we touched on a whole range of subjects, from the comings and goings of players that will affect the Vipers, and every other squad in this tournament, the warm-up match against the Dubai Capitals, the arrivals of Dan Lawrence and Alex Hales who were both at their first Vipers sessions of the season on Friday and lots more besides. It’s an engaging and insightful chat and you won’t want to miss it.

And a reminder that tickets are on sale for all Vipers matches this season, starting with that opener against the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders.

You can get hold of your tickets through the league’s website, www.ilt20.ae or at any Virgin Megastore in the UAE.

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This episode features an interview with Adam Hose after the batter top-scored with 39 from 21 balls in the Vipers’ warm-up match against the Dubai Capitals at the ICC Academy on Thursday evening.

The match was 14-a-side and both teams had players who batted more than once as they sought middle practice. The Capitals won by 37 runs as their batters went exceptionally hard on a superb pitch and with a very short boundary on one side of the number two oval at the Academy.

The Vipers used nine bowlers with young UAE all-rounder Ali Naseer impressing with the new ball, while spinners Nathan Sowter and Rohan Mustafa took 1 for 15 and 2 for 18 respectively, using the longer square boundary to their advantage.

When the Vipers batted, in addition to Adam, Michael Jones and Sherfane Rutherford also spent useful time in the middle ahead of Sunday’s opener against the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders.


Adam talks with us about lessons learnt from the warm-up match, his time in Australia with the Adelaide Strikers in the Big Bash League and his preparations for the Vipers' opening match of the tournament, against the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday January the 21st.


Tickets are on sale for that match and all Vipers outings and can be purchased via the ILT20 website or at any Virgin Megastore in the UAE.

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This time we hear from Toby Gregory, the founder of The Plastic Pledge, which has joined forces with the Desert Vipers as a Sustainability Impact Partner for the next two years.

The agreement will see the Vipers sign up to the pledge as part of its drive to eradicate single-use plastic in its team environment, inviting its fans to do likewise.

The Desert Vipers and The Plastic Pledge will come together to develop innovative, environmentally focussed initiatives, both locally and regionally, with the idea of empowering schools, engaging with communities, and leaving a lasting legacy of environmental responsibility.


In this podcast Toby explains all about The Plastic Pledge and why he's partnered with the Desert Vipers.

This podcast also includes details of the Desert Vipers' latest signing  - 18 year-old UAE wicketkeeper-batter Tanish Suri.

Tanish, who made his senior international debut for the UAE against Afghanistan in December 2023, becomes the Vipers’ fifth local signing for season two, alongside the retained Rohan Mustafa and Ali Naseer and the draft recruits Karthik Meiyappan and Aryan Lakra.

So, Tanish Suri has linked up with the Vipers – and it’s another shot in the arm for the development of the game in the UAE.


[Photo features Desert Vipers CEO Phil Oliver (left) and Toby Gregory at the pair agreed their partnership.]

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As the players continue to arrive and preparations both on and off the field hit a high gear, who better than to give us the lie of the land than Director of Cricket Tom Moody.

We caught up with Tom during a squad training session at the ICC Academy and we talked around a whole range of topics, from Colin Munro’s retention as captain for this season, the inclusion of a Pakistan contingent in the squad, the fact players will be coming and going far more this season than last due to international call-ups, the likely impact of the wildcard and super sub changes that have come in for this edition of the tournament and, of course, the 64 million dollar question of whether the Vipers can go one better than last year and this time lift the silverware.

All that and more is coming up and, as ever, with Tom, it’s thought-provoking stuff and well worth your time.

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In this episode it’s all starting to get real again as we catch up with Colin Munro, who has been confirmed as captain for season two.

We spoke with Colin at the team’s jersey launch at Soul Beach at the JA Resort in Jebel Ali, just six days before the Vipers’ first match of this campaign, against the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday January the 21st.

That jersey launch was also attended by UAE all-rounder Rohan Mustafa, one of the pillars of the side in season one, as well as two new players for this season, Netherlands all-rounder Bas de Leede and Scotland batter Michael Jones, plus Director of Cricket Tom Moody, Head Coach James Foster and fast bowling coach Azhar Mahmood.

Colin and Rohan arrived wearing the new playing and training kit aboard the Ocean Guardian, a boat rowed in by the founder of The Plastic Pledge, Toby Gregory, and one he and two colleagues rowed across the Atlantic Ocean this time last year to help publicise environmental challenges the planet is facing. The Vipers have paired with The Plastic Pledge for two years as a Sustainability Impact Partner.

And the players and Toby were met on the beach by pupils from GEMS Metropole school in Dubai, one of the schools where the Vipers have rolled out their cricket coaching and sustainability initiatives since the end of season one.

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In this episode we speak with new signing Dan Lawrence, the English batting powerhouse who is set to arrive in Dubai off the back of time alongside 50-over Cricket World Cup winners Glenn Maxwell and Marcus Stoinis at the Melbourne Stars in Australia’s Big Bash League.

Dan, who has switched county sides during the winter, from Essex to Surrey, already has experience of the DP World ILT20, having played three matches for the Dubai Capitals in season one and he was in the UAE as recently as the back-end of last year when he played in the T10 tournament in Abu Dhabi for the Deccan Gladiators, so the Vipers are getting a player who knows UAE conditions extremely well.

The franchise is also getting a player who wants to make his case for inclusion in England’s white ball set-up as all his international cricket thus far has come in the Test format, and that hunger to succeed in shortform cricket could mean his signing is a win-win for Dan and the Vipers.

We spoke to Dan in Melbourne during his Big Bash League duty ahead of his journey to Dubai to link up with the Vipers.
 

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The episodes are coming thick and fast as season two approaches, and so is the news, and this time we talk about an exciting new partnership with Bat For A Chance, a UK-based initiative that aims to recycle used cricket clothing and equipment to ensure as many people as possible around the world get the opportunity to play the sport.

We hear from the founder of Bat For A Chance, Will Gaffney, as well as Desert Vipers CEO Phil Oliver, on this collaboration which chimes perfectly with the Vipers’ Sustainability agenda of reuse, recycle and reduce.

On top of that, we catch up with Head Coach James Foster, who’s one of the first overseas arrivals into Dubai ahead of the tournament, and key UAE all-rounder Rohan Mustafa, and they give us their thoughts as time ticks away towards the Vipers’ first match of the season, against the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday the 21st of January.

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Coming up we’ve got a terrific chat with the Durham leg-spinner Nathan Sowter, who's been drafted into the Desert Vipers squad for season two.


Nathan was one of the leading slow bowlers in shortform cricket in the UK in the 2023 season. He was part of Tom Moody’s Oval Invincibles side, alongside fellow Desert Viper Tom Curran, which won The men’s Hundred, and he was superb in the T20 Blast for his new county, finishing as one of the top wicket-takers in that tournament and boasting a superb economy rate too.

Added to that, Nathan’s a superb fielder, and if you don’t believe us then have a look on YouTube, which boasts some fantastic catches from the 31 year-old.

He’s at the peak of his powers now and he’s all set to link up with the Desert Vipers ahead of the action getting underway, with the side's first match against the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders on day three of the tournament, Sunday January the 21st at the Dubai International Stadium.

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This time we hear from one of the Vipers’ outstanding players of season one, and a player who provided perhaps the moment of the tournament, left-handed powerhouse Sherfane Rutherford.

Sherfane scored 247 runs at an incredible strike-rate of 184.32 in season one and in the Qualifier against the Gulf Giants, after tearing his hamstring, he limped back out to the middle and blazed an unforgettable 37 from just 19 balls with four sixes to help catapult the side to a winning total and secure a berth in the final.

It took him months to recover from that injury and coming up he details what that recovery involved.

The good news is that Sherfane is fit and firing again now, so much so that he’s now very much a part of the West Indies white ball squads, and he played in both the ODI and T20I series against England in the Caribbean before Christmas – enjoying some success too.

Sherfane tell us all about that, as well as discussing the fact he’s now one of the most sought-after T20 players in the world at the moment, securing deals in both the Pakistan Super League and the Indian Premier League, tournaments that follow on the back of the DP World ILT20.

It’s a thoroughly engaging chat so you won’t want to miss it.

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