Desert Vipers Head Coach Azhar Mahmood believes the Vipers can thrive at the upcoming ExxonMobil Guyana Global Super League despite the loss of their captain Chris Green.
The off-spinning all-rounder was ruled out of the five-team Twenty20 tournament that takes place at Providence Stadium in late July and early August after he suffered a hand injury playing for English county side Lancashire earlier this month.
But Azhar told the Vipers Voices podcast that, despite Chris’s loss, he was confident the side would take the situation in their collective stride.
“It is definitely a big blow as he was our skipper as well as being a crucial player for us who bats at number seven along with his off-spin as well, plus he is a gun fielder too.
“So, definitely it is a big blow for us, but these things happen in the game of cricket and you need to control the controllables. You cannot control everything. So, it is a big blow for us and it is a shame that he will not around with us for this tournament.
“But, yes, definitely we can cope if he (Chris Green) is not a part of the team as we are a professional side. This is modern day T20 and when people are not there, other people can come and join the squad and they can gel very quickly. It is not like the olden days where you have to get people in and they need time to settle in.
“With T20 matches happening around the world, players know each other really well so whoever will replace him will be able to gel very quickly.”
A replacement for Chris Green in the Vipers squad will be announced in due course.
Azhar, who in addition to his previous work as bowling coach with the Vipers, has also been in charge of the Pakistan men’s national team and the Islamabad franchise in the Pakistan Super League amongst other assignments, said one reason for his positivity was the presence in the squad of two UAE players, unsung members of the DP World ILT20-winning group – all-rounder Sanjay Pahal and fast bowler Matiullah Khan.
“I think this is an important opportunity for them,” said Azhar. “In the last tournament (DP World ILT20 Season 4) they worked very hard, but they did not get the full opportunity.
“This tournament (GSL) is a platform for them to show how good they are and they have improved a lot since I last saw them during the last season with the Desert Vipers.
“I have been following them wherever they have been playing cricket, they have been doing really well, and I am in touch with them.
“This is a really good sign for us. And these guys are getting better and they will definitely be a big boost for us to do well in this tournament.”
And the Head Coach, who as a player was part of English county Surrey’s success in the first-ever domestic Twenty20 tournament, in 2003, said he also expected the West Indian contingent of left-arm fast bowler Ramon Simmonds, left-arm spinner Khary Pierre, batting all-rounder Kyle Mayers and teenager top-order batter Zachary Carter to play key roles for the Vipers.
“They will all be key players for us, especially in those conditions where they know the conditions well and their local knowledge and their insights will be very important for us on the field and off the field as well,” he said.
“We also have former West Indies player Shane Dowrich with us as assistant coach. They know the culture better; they know the conditions much more than us. So, it is always handy to have people from that environment and people who can chip in and pass on the knowledge.”
Azhar said that despite the four other sides in the tournament – holders and hosts Guyana Amazon Warriors, San Francisco Unicorns, Lahore Qalandars and Perth Scorchers – all having impressive pedigrees, he had full confidence in the Vipers to deliver on a global stage: “We need to be positive. We need to believe in ourselves.
“Yes, if you look at our squad maybe you will not see the big names. When you talk about Guyana Amazon Warriors, they have the big names, but big names cannot win you the tournament. Our players can execute their plans well, gel together and they have a hunger. That can win you tournaments.
“I can see there are hungry players in our line-up and they want to win the tournament, just like we won the tournament (DP World ILT20 Season 4) this year. And we want to tell the people how good we are even without our full resources. And we need to take advantage of that.
“Yes, it might be tough. There might be challenges in that tournament. But we need to believe we are going there to win the tournament, not to make up the numbers.”
Here is a list of players who will represent the Desert Vipers at the ExxonMobil Guyana Global Super League:
Chris Green (AUS)
Daryl Mitchell (NZ)
Bevon Jacobs (NZ)
Kyle Jamieson (NZ)
Shadab Khan (PAK)
Vriitya Aravind (UAE)
Khuzaima Bin Tanveer (UAE)
Matiullah Khan (UAE)
Sanjay Pahal (UAE)
Andries Gous (USA)
Kyle Mayers (WI)
Khary Pierre (WI)
Ramon Simmonds (WI)
Zachary Carter (WI)
Tickets for the ExxonMobil Guyana Global Super League can be purchased via this link: Click Here to Buy Tickets
