The Desert Vipers pulled off a hard-fought two-wicket win over the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders (ADKR) in Sharjah and now have two wins from two games. 

ADKR reached 100 for one in 11 overs but the Vipers fought back through some excellent bowling from debutant Qais Ahmad (two for 29), Noor Ahmad (two for 35) and Naseem Shah (one for 28) with the latter’s final over to big-hitter Andre Russell costing only five runs.

Top-score for ADKR was former Viper Alex Hales, with 53 from 37 balls.

The Vipers stuttered early on in their chase before player of the match Shimron Hetmyer (48 from 25 balls) and Dan Lawrence (35 in 32 balls) added 68 for the fifth wicket, and at 134 for four in the 16^th over, the team seemed well-placed for a comfortable win.

But when both players fell in quick succession, the match was back in the balance and it took a superb cameo from Khuzaima bin Tanveer, with an unbeaten 31 from 12 deliveries to see the side home with three balls in hand. 

Match Scores: 

Toss: Desert Vipers 
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders:  171/6 (20 overs)
Top scorer: Alex Hales 53 (37 balls)
Desert Vipers: 175/8 (19.3 overs)
Top scorer: Shimron Hetmyer 48 (25 deliveries)
Match Result: The Desert Vipers won by two wickets
Player of the Match: Shimron Hetmyer 48 (25)

Here are some quotes from the Vipers Voices post-match vodcast and podcast featuring Dan Lawrence:

On Khuzaima Bin Tanveer’s heroics at the end to take the Desert Vipers to victory:

“We have worked out he is an absolute gem of a cricketer. His bowling obviously speaks for itself. He started really well last year with the ball, and he is carrying that on this year and, to be honest, I did not know he could strike a cricket ball like that.

“He really dug us out of a hole there and pretty much single-handedly won the game on his own there so congratulations to him and it puts us in really good stead now.”

On how the game swung in and out of favour of the Vipers until the very end:  

“It was a funny game of cricket. There were periods of that game where it felt like we were in total control and then there were a few periods where we felt like we were right up against it. 

“They came at us quite hard with the ball and we lost three early wickets. Then we had a period of consolidation there in the middle and then when me and Hetty (Shimron Hetmyer) were batting we thought we had it in the bag. Then we both got out at pretty tricky times and it was a hell of an effort from Kuzi (Khuzaima Bin Tanveer) at the end to see us over the line.”

On his own knock and where things went wrong:

“I thought I played well up to that point (of getting out). I was just trying to assess the game situation and understood that it was not going to be a kind of a glamorous innings and I was not going to strike at 200 (runs per hundred balls). I just tried to anchor the game and try and take it as deep as possible and the plan was working until me and Hettie got out.

“But we are not playing anywhere near our best cricket at the moment and we are two from two so these are really promising signs.”

On bowling to Sherfane Rutherford and getting his wicket :  

“The plan was when a left-hander came in there was going to be a decent chance that I was going to bowl an over. So as soon as he (Sherfane Rutherford) came in I came on to bowl. Thankfully he had just walked in, and he had not got his eye in because obviously we all know how dangerous he is, I managed to spin a couple in my first over and get the wicket which was a great feeling.

“It was nice to bowl a good over but I think the two other spinners were the stars of the show today, Noor (Ahmad) showing his class as he always does and Qais (Ahmad) bowled beautifully as well.”

On Shimron Hetmyer going after Abu Dhabi Knight Riders’ two West Indies players Sunil Narine and Andre Russell:

“I do not think there is any such thing as respect between West Indians when they play against each other. I think Hettie (Shimron Hetmyer) always wanted to get after Sunil Narine and Andre Russell when they came on. 

“So it was great viewing from the other end watching a world-class batter face a world-class spinner (Narine). Hettie got his day today and he played him really well and that was a big two balls in the game when he hit him for two sixes in a row.”

On the team’s chances of doing well against the Gulf Giants on Monday In Dubai:

“Every team in this competition, if you look through the names and the team sheets that are being put out, is really world-class this year, and you are going to have to play well to win any of these games.

“I am sure we are going to treat them (Gulf Giants) with the same respect we have treated the other two teams and we will do our planning and hopefully go three from three.”

The Desert Vipers next play the Gulf Giants at the Dubai International Stadium on Monday, December the 8th, starting at 6:30 pm.

Tickets for all Desert Vipers matches are now available here

The Desert Vipers opened Season 4 with a four-wicket win against The Dubai Capitals, a team they remained winless against through Season 3, including a closely fought final. 

Set a target of 151 to win, the Vipers chased it down with an over to spare. 

Having won the toss, Desert Vipers captain Sam Curran – standing in for Lockie Ferguson, who is on the verge of a comeback from a hamstring injury – chose for the team to field first. 

Noor Ahmad, Khuzaima Bin Tanveer and David Payne took two wickets apiece while Naseem Shah and Sam Curran completed the tally with one wicket each. Noor Ahmad was the most economical of the quintet, on his Vipers debut, proving once again why he is considered one of the world’s best bowlers in this format.

The chase was dominated by Pakistan opener Fakhar Zaman and USA wicket-keeper batter Andries Gous who led the charge. Zaman finished with 26 off 15 deliveries, while Gous earned himself Player of the Match with a well struck 58 off just 36 deliveries. 

The side endured a brief wobble from 108 for two to 133 for six before Dan Lawrence (19 not out) and Khuzaima bin Tanveer (12 not out) saw the side home with six balls in hand.

Match Scores: 

Toss: Desert Vipers

Dubai Capitals: 150/8

Top scorer: Rovman Powell 39(22 deliveries)

Desert Vipers: 151/6 (19 overs)

Top scorer: Andries Gous 58(36 deliveries)

Match Result: Desert Vipers won by 4 wickets 

Player of the Match: Andries Gous

Here are some quotes from the Vipers Voices post-match vodcast and podcast featuring USA wicketkeeper batter Andries Gous

On playing a winning knock for the team:

“It is good (to do well) when you come into a new team, because you are eager to start well, and I have done that now. It is a nice feeling to get going from the start, so yes I am pretty happy about that.

“I knew I was watching the ball well and I was getting myself into good positions. And then I just told myself, just react to whatever was coming my way, and thankfully it worked out today.”

On how difficult or easy it was to keep to Afghanistan spin bowler Noor Ahmad:  

“Noor is just world-class. I have never quite known which way it is spinning when I am batting against him. It is just tough. I am just happy he is on our team. 

“But he is truly world-class and it is an unbelievable challenge for me keeping for him.

“I think it will just make my keeping better. But, yes, it is nice keeping to these world-class players and experiencing the different approach of these bowlers. It has been an honour.”

On whether coming into this tournament right after playing the T10 in Abu Dhabi was helpful:

“Yes I think it gave me some confidence. I finished quite well in the last four games of the T10. It almost feels like you have so much time now.

“The T10 was just very quick and you have just got to go from ball one. This just felt like I could take my time, I could just watch the ball and react, and then whatever happened, I could adjust from it. So, it has been pretty cool so far.”

On the team’s chances of doing well against the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders in Sharjah on Friday:

“I think the sky is the limit for this team. We have got unbelievable batting depth, and then we showed tonight that our bowling is just world-class.

“I think the staff and the management have recruited beautifully and we have got a really good side. As long as we stick to our skills and execute our skills, I think we are going to be hard to beat.”

The Desert Vipers next play the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Friday, December 5th, starting at 6:30 pm.

Tickets for all Desert Vipers matches are now available here.

Desert Vipers Head Coach James Foster has said that “keeping things really simple” will be the best recipe for success in this season’s DP World ILT20.

The Vipers go into the opening match of the tournament on Tuesday the 2^nd of December, against the Dubai Capitals in a repeat of last season’s final, having played in the ultimate match twice without being able to secure the silverware.

But, rather than thinking about that too much, Foster told the Vipers Voices podcast that focusing on what was in front of the squad, instead of thinking too far ahead, was the mindset he wanted from his players.

“It is just (about) keeping things really simple,” he said. “Yes, we have got the goal to win the tournament, just the same as every other team, but (for us) it is just keeping things really simple.

“I know players will say it is about one game at a time, but it really is breaking it down as much as that, seeing where we are at, and just putting in our best performances or giving ourselves the best chance to be putting in our best performances every single time that we go out in the field.”

The eve-of-match practice session at the ICC Academy at Dubai Sports City was the first time all the squad had been together, with Khuzaima bin Tanveer, Qais Ahmad and Andries Gous all involved in the latter stages of the T10 tournament in Abu Dhabi, while Tom Bruce was a late arrival after domestic commitments in New Zealand.

That late coming together of the players could be seen as a disadvantage, but Foster preferred to look at it through a lens of positivity and played down any possibility of the quartet being jaded ahead of the season’s opener.

“I think playing cricket is really good because you are match-fit and match-ready to come here,” he said.

“It is about the players then getting what they need out of today’s (final) training as opposed to (telling them) ‘You need to do X, Y and Z,’ so, if they want to hit they hit, if they want to bowl (they) bowl (and) if they want to chill they can chill.

“It is getting them to be in the right frame of mind for tomorrow’s game.”

Talking of that game, how important did Foster think it was for his side to get off to a winning start?

“It is always nice to win your first game, but it is always nice to win every game that you play and you always prepare to win, but the reality is that is not always going to happen so we will manage that.

“It is all ifs and buts at the moment (and), for me, the focus is purely about preparing the guys for the first game giving as much role clarity as you possibly can, getting guys in the right frame of mind and just (for them to) be ready to put on the show tomorrow.”

One player the team will be without at the start of the tournament is talismanic leg-spinning Sri Lanka all-rounder Wanindu Hasaranga, a Viper since Season 1, and a player who has driven the team forward in each of the first three campaigns.

But Foster said he was content they had found the ideal replacement in Afghanistan wrist-spinner Noor Ahmad.

“Hasaranga has been phenomenal for us and it is a real shame that he will not be here for the start but that is how it is,” he said.

“We have got a fantastic replacement in Noor, who is young and exciting. Yes, he is a different type of spinner (to Hasaranga and has a) different type of skill-set, but (he is) a wicket-taker just like Hasaranga, so we are absolutely delighted that Noor has joined us.”

Foster said he was also delighted at the first impression he had formed of Bilal Tahir from Kuwait and Faisal Khan from Saudi Arabia, two newcomers to the Vipers this term as part of the DP World ILT20’s connections with cricket in those two countries.

“I have been very impressed,” he said. “We really have two very nice batters and they are also both bowling some spin as well and I think this is a great opportunity for them, a great learning opportunity, bearing in mind they get to rub shoulders with some world-class players. 

“When I speak to them, they seem very excited, they have always got really big smiles on their faces, and they are adding to the group which is great.

“I was talking on Sunday about the learnings that they will hopefully make here which I am very confident that they will in all aspects of the game – not just the technical aspect but also the mental side, the fitness side, the environment side, the way you train.

“Then they can pass that back on when they get back home and then, all of a sudden, it starts organically spreading. This is a great opportunity for the guys, and they have been fitting in really well.”

And what about the prospect of going up against the Capitals again, just 10 months after the heartbreak of losing a final against them in Season 3? Is it all about revenge for that loss?

“It is just the first game of the season, it is really the way I see it,” said Foster.

“They have got a very different looking squad from what they had last season, so a lot has passed since then.

“For us it is about keeping things very simple whether it is Dubai in the first game or any of the other teams.

“It is just about us doing our research, going about our business and then knowing, on the day, we take on a very good team.”