ILT20 TEAM GUIDE: The Vipers have a stacked batting line-up and an enviable spin department but their death bowling leaves something to be desired, writes AMEY KULKARNI
Coach: James Foster
Tom Moody, formerly of Sunrisers Hyderabad, has been installed as Desert Vipers' director of cricket while James Foster will do the day-to-day work as head coach. Foster, a former England international, has previously served as a batting consultant with Glamorgan, held down head coaching positions with Khulna Tigers and Peshawar Zalmi, and worked as a fielding coach with KKR in the IPL.
Captain: Colin Munro
Hard-hitting New Zealander Colin Munro will skipper Desert Vipers in their inaugural campaign. One of the best batters in the world, he has played in franchise competitions around the world and amassed nearly 9,000 T20 runs at a strike rate around the 140-mark. An experienced operator.
Colin Munro [Chris Hyde/Getty Images]
BATTING
Power hitters
Desert Vipers have no shortage of options in this department, especially with a top three of Alex Hales, Adam Lyth and Munro, with the former pair well known for taking teams apart in the powerplay.
Hales scored 212 runs at a strike rate of 147.22 to help England to T20 World Cup glory last year while Lyth scored at a rate of 178.32 in the powerplay during the 2022 T20 Blast.
As for Munro, his career strike rate in the format is 140 – rising above 150 in T20Is – while nearly 6,000 of his T20 runs have come from boundaries. Only six players have scored more sixes in the format than the New Zealander.
Anchor
This is Sam Billings' domain. He is no slouch with the bat, striking at around 130 in T20s, but represents the perfect foundation for his more expansive teammates to explode around. You'd expect, however, that steady batting somehow doesn’t fit into this squad’s DNA.
Finisher
So many options. West Indies international Sherfane Rutherford has a strike rate of 130 and seven T20 half-centuries to his name while in the recent Abu Dhabi T10 League, his 115 runs were scored at a whopping 198.27 strike rate.
Benny Howell has spent years cultivating a reputation as an explosive middle-order batting, notching up franchise appearances around the world, and like Rutherford has flashed his bat around in the Abu Dhabi T10 – in 2021/22, he recorded a strike rate of 163.63 as he chipped in with 72 runs for Bangla Tigers.
Additional options include England international Tom Curran and Sri Lankan powder keg Wanindu Hasaranga.
Problem areas
Desert Vipers are not short on options with the bat but might have preferred to have a dedicated finisher – think Andre Russell, David Wiese, Tim David – rather than players who can fill in in that position. Rutherford was in form last November for the T10s but doesn't produce the goods on a consistent basis.
That said, at least by having a couple of options and batting deep the burden can be shared around.
Benny Howell [Ryan Hiscott/Getty Images]
BOWLING
Speed merchants
Desert Vipers have a fairly formidable pace attack with a plethora of options in their artillery and a nice blend of youth (Matheesha Pathirana, Ruben Trumpelmann, Shiraz Ahmed) and experience (Tymal Mills – family commitments permitting, Sheldon Cottrell, Tom Curran).
In Mills, Cottrell and Curran alone the attack already boasts over 500 T20 wickets and a handy mixture of left and right-hand bowling. However, it is worth noting that all three players are liable to leak runs.
New ball specialist Trumplemann has gained himself a cult following after impressing for Namibia at the past two T20 World Cups. The left-armer can swing the balls both ways and uses his height to get extra bounce with the new ball. Pathirana, meanwhile, could come in handy at the death and is familiar with the conditions after representing Bangla Tigers in the T10 League.
Variation
Spinners are going to be crucial on the UAE's pitches, which have traditionally assisted slower bowlers. In Hasaranga, Desert Vipers have one of the best going. An aggressive right-arm leg-break bowler, he perplexes many a batter with his variations and has previously experienced these pitches during the 2021 T20 World Cup and similar conditions in the IPL. At the former event, he was the leading wicket-taker, collecting 16 wickets and conceding just 5.2 runs per over.
Scotland international Mark Watt will be able to contribute in the middle overs with his handy left-arm spin while local favourite Rohan Mustafa adds further variety with his right-arm offies. He has taken 74 wickets in 71 T20 appearances and has a career economy of 6.63 in the format.
Mystery man Howell, a man with many variations, rounds out an impressive spin department.
Problem areas
Two words: death bowling. Both Curran and Trumpelmann have proved expensive at the death in the past, meaning the burden of responsibility will fall on Mills and Pathirana. Mills is also prone to expensive moments while 20-year-old Pathirana has played just 10 T20s in his short career. Hasaranga, meanwhile, is more than capable of bowling in the final four overs but this could expose a problem earlier in the innings. A possible Achilles heel.
Ruben Trumpelmann [Aamir Qureshi/Getty Images]
Who takes the gloves?
Billings will be the first choice with the gloves having occupied this role across his career. He has taken 136 catches and 23 stumpings in his first 250 T20 outings. Dinesh Chandimal, a late addition to the squad, will likely serve as his understudy following Ben Duckett's withdrawal.
Squad: Colin Munro, Wanindu Hasaranga, Sam Billings, Alex Hales, Tom Curran, Matheesha Pathirana, Sherfane Rutherford, Sheldon Cottrell, Benny Howell, Ruben Trumpelmann, Mark Watt, Tymal Mills, Adam Lyth, Rohan Mustafa, Shiraz Ahmad, Ali Naseer, Ronak Panoly, Dinesh Chandimal, Gus Atkinson, Jake Lintott
Possible starting XI: Alex Hales, Adam Lyth, Colin Munro, Sam Billings, Rohan Mustafa, Sherfane Rutherford, Benny Howell, Wanindu Hasaranga, Tom Curran, Matheesha Pathirana, Ruben Trumpelmann
Fixtures: January 15 - Sharjah Warriors (Dubai international Stadium, 2pm GMT), January 18 – Abu Dhabi Knight Riders (Dubai International Stadium, 2pm), January 20 – Abu Dhabi Knight Riders (Sheikh Zayed Stadium, 2pm), January 22 – Gulf Giants (Dubai International Stadium, 2pm), January 24 – MI Emirates (Sheikh Zayed Stadium, 2pm), January 28 - Dubai Capitals (Dubai International Stadium, 2pm), January 29 – MI Emirates (Sharjah Cricket Stadium, 2pm), January 31 – Sharjah Warriors (Sharjah Cricket Stadium, 2pm), February 2 – Dubai Capitals (Dubai International Stadium, 2pm), February 4 – Gulf Giants (Dubai International Stadium, 10am)
Welcome to www.thecricketer.com - the online home of the world’s oldest cricket magazine. Breaking news, interviews, opinion and cricket goodness from every corner of our beautiful sport, from village green to national arena.