Vipers Voices

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This time we go off the field, away from the players, to hear from one of the unsung heroes of the Vipers backroom staff, Strength and Conditioning Coach Darren Veness.

Daz, as he’s universally known, is one of the heartbeats of the Vipers and his role in keeping the players in tip-top physical shape was crucial in the side’s charge to the final in season one of the tournament.

He’s someone who has vast experience of working with top-level players, having spent two decades with English county Somerset, half a dozen years with Surrey, plus his other work with not only the Vipers but also, amongst other teams, The Oval Invincibles in The Hundred and time, too, with the England men’s set-up.

Coming up is a fascinating insight into Daz’s role and how he works with the players to ensure they can produce their best on an ongoing basis despite the tight schedule that asks so much of them.

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This time we hear from new signing Tymal Mills.

The left-arm fast bowler has replaced Gus Atkinson in the squad for season two, which gets underway on January the 19th, after Gus was selected for England’s Test tour of India.

For Tymal, it’s a return to the Vipers fold as he was a part of the squad in season one, only for his involvement to be cut short when he suffered a recurrence of a toe injury.

Since then, he’s enjoyed perhaps the best year of his career, starring for Sussex Shark's in the UK's T20 Blast, playing in T10 tournaments in both Zimbabwe and the UAE and finishing as the top wicket-taker in The Hundred, performing superbly for Southern Brave.


Form like that earned Tymal a place in the England T20I squad for the tour of the West Indies before Christmas, and his inclusion for the DP World ILT20 is great news for the Vipers as the squad is compensating for losing one outstanding bowler by drafting in another.

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You’ll sometimes hear us say that an episode is a little bit different from the norm but this one really is, as we chat with the father of Bas de Leede, the Dutch all-rounder and one of the Vipers’ new recruits for season two.

It’s no exaggeration to say that Tim de Leede is a Dutch cricketing legend. A batting all-rounder, he played in every match of the Netherlands’ first four appearances in major ICC events – the Cricket World Cups in 1996, 2003 and 2007, and the Champions Trophy in 2002.

Now retired, he has been followed into cricket by not only his son Bas, but also his niece Babette, who’s captained the Dutch women’s team.

So, we decided to have a chat with Tim about Bas’s background and how his son has risen to become one of the most exciting young all-rounders in world cricket today.

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It's time to catch up with another of the Desert Vipers' new recruits - batter Adam Hose.

Vipers Voices spoke with Adam while he was in the UAE for the T10 tournament prior to heading off to Australia to play in the Big Bash League, and in a wide-ranging conversation he explained why he thinks red ball cricket has helped his white ball form, his own motivations and what he thinks he can bring to the table for the Vipers in the coming season.

It's a cracking chat and well worth your time!

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In this episode we speak with captain Colin Munro.

With the DP World ILT20 only a month and a half away, it seemed like to perfect time to check in with the man who led the side so well in season one and is someone who, this year, has cemented his place as one of the leading T20 batters of all time by passing 10,000 runs in the format, an incredible achievement.


We chatted with Colin during his stay in Abu Dhabi for the T10 tournament before he headed to Australia to play for the Brisbane Heat prior to linking up once more with the Vipers in Dubai.


Our chat ranged from learnings and memories of season one of the DP World ILT20, through his hectic 2023, to recharging his batteries to go again and why he believes the Vipers are well-equipped to go one better than season one's runners-up finish.


If you want tickets for any Vipers match in the 2024 edition of the DP World ILT20, they can be purchased on the ILT20 website (www.ilt20.ae) or at any Virgin Megastore in the UAE. The Vipers' first match, against the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders, is at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday 21 January, the third day of the tournament.

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In this episode we join Desert Vipers staff, some of the franchise's UAE-based players and some special guests for a trip into the local community in Dubai.

The Desert Vipers put together the Viper Cup, an indoor tournament for eight teams at the U-Pro indoor cricket centre in Al Quoz, an industrial area of Dubai about 15 to 20 minutes drive from the Vipers' home venue during the DP World ILT20, the Dubai International Stadium.

The Viper Cup is all part of the franchise's efforts to reach out to the local community to connect with existing supporters, garner new ones, and make people aware of the causes the Vipers have adopted - sustainability and highlighting the climate crisis.

In this episode we hear from Desert Vipers CEO Phil Oliver as well as ILT20 CEO David White and special guest Shoaib Akhtar, the former Pakistan fast bowler, both of whom attended the event, as well as three of the Vipers' UAE-based players - Karthik Meiyappan, Aryan Lakra and Rohan Mustafa.

Tickets are now on sale for the Desert Vipers matches, the first of which is against the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday 21 January 2024. To buy them, visit the ILT20 website - www.ilt20.ae or visit any Virgin Megastore in the UAE.

To read all about the Desert Vipers' Sustainability Strategy, go to: https://www.thedesertvipers.com/static-assets/docs/dv_sustainability_report.pdf

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This is an episode with a difference as we focus on the Desert Vipers Schools Programme. 

The Desert Vipers staff are visiting as many schools as possible within the UAE, and the idea is designed to have multiple upsides. It is, first and foremost, a means to provide an introduction to cricket for children in the country which the franchise – and the tournament – calls home, something that will hopefully foster a love for the sport among those children.

On top of that, the programme will hopefully create some more Desert Vipers fans, drive attendances at Vipers matches during the upcoming second season of the ILT20 and also highlight the issues of sustainability and the climate emergency, all things the franchise is committed to do.

Vipers Voices went along for one of the school sessions, at GEMS Winchester School in Dubai, and we hear from some of those involved, including Vipers new recruits Karthik Meiyappan and Aryan Lakra, as well as from the Desert Vipers Sustainability Manager Ben Hardy-Jones, on why this programme is such a key part of what the Vipers are doing.

During Ben's chat, he mentions the Vipers' Sustainability Strategy Framework - how the Vipers plan to reduce emissions to net zero - and here's a link to that documents which can be found on the Desert Vipers website: https://www.thedesertvipers.com/static-assets/docs/dv_sustainability_report.pdf

(Thumbnail photo is Desert Vipers Operations Manager Sam Charnley)

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This episode is the second part of our two-part special with all-rounder Tom Curran.

This time we’re switching our focus from looking back to looking forward as we chat with Tom about his plans, both before and after the upcoming DP World ILT20, which gets underway on January the 19th 2024.

Tom also speaks about the Vipers’ new signings, including the Pakistani trio of Shaheen Shah Afridi, Azam Khan and Shadab Khan and, on top of that, he gives us his views on the franchise’s stance on climate change and reducing its carbon footprint, as well as the Desert Vipers’ schools programme in the UAE.

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This is a special episode because it’s the first of a two-part interview with all-rounder Tom Curran.

Tom was one of the stars of season one for the Vipers, making telling contributions with bat, ball and in the field and he is back for another crack at the tournament in 2024.

In this first part of our chat we talk about the inaugural ILT20 when the Vipers lost in the final to the Gulf Giants, and also about what he’s been up to during the rest of the year, with action in the Pakistan Super League for Islamabad United, the T20 Blast in the UK for Surrey and then for the Oval Invincibles in The Hundred, where he produced an incredible innings in the final against the Manchester Originals to see Tom Moody’s side to a memorable title success.

Tom Curran also reflects on a brief trip to the Caribbean Premier League, playing one match for the Trinbago Knight Riders, he talks us through his frustrations with injuries and his decision not to play red-ball cricket this year, and he gives us his thoughts on why England’s Cricket World Cup defence has turned into such a damp squib.

It’s a terrific, insightful chat you won’t want to miss.

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In this episode we speak with Desert Vipers Director of Cricket Tom Moody for his reaction to the announcement of the fixtures for season two of the DP World ILT20.

The Vipers are in action for the first time on the third day of the tournament, against the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders in Dubai on Sunday January the 21st, and then face a run of 10 matches in 22 days, including six games in nine days midway through the tournament. That run included two sets of back-to-back matches.

It's a tough schedule, but one Tom is confident the Vipers can cope with given the depth and quality of the squad he has assembled alongside Chief Executive Phil Oliver and Head Coach James Foster.

For full details of all the Desert Vipers matches, visit the website thedesertvipers.com or any of the team's profiles on all the major social media platforms.

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