The Desert Vipers is a professional
Twenty20
Twenty20 (abbreviated T20) is a shortened format of cricket. At the professional level, it was introduced by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in 2003 for the county cricket, inter-county competition. In a Twenty20 game, the two t ...
franchise
cricket
Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...
team that plays in the
Emirati International League T20
The International League T20 (ILT20), also endorsed as the DP World ILT20 for sponsorship reasons, is a T20 cricket tournament being played in the United Arab Emirates. It is sanctioned by Emirates Cricket Board.
The first edition of the tourn ...
(ILT20). It was one of the six teams that were announced for the inaugural season. It was founded in 2022, and currently owned by the Lancer Capital LLC.
The team's chief executive officer is Phil Oliver; the cricket director is
Tom Moody
Thomas Masson Moody (born 2 October 1965) is a former Australian international cricketer and current Director of Cricket of Sri Lanka Cricket. He ended his long tenure with the Indian Premier League team Sunrisers Hyderabad in August 2022 and ...
. The team is coached by
James Foster and captained by
Colin Munro
Colin Munro (born 11 March 1987) is a South African born former New Zealand international cricketer, who played for New Zealand cricket team. He was a member of the New Zealand Under-19 side and is currently a member of the Auckland cricket t ...
. The Vipers were the runners-up of the first season of the tournament, and finished 5th in Season 2.
History
In August 2022, the
Emirates Cricket Board
Emirates Cricket Board is the governing body of certain cricket activities in United Arab Emirates. It is United Arab Emirates's representative at the International Cricket Council and is an Associate Member and has been a Member of that body sin ...
(ECB) announced the establishment of the International League T20, to be started in 2023. The teams for the competition, representing three different cities of the
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...
, and three general teams which were not tied exclusively to one city, were put up on auction in UAE in September 2022. The franchise was purchased by
Manchester United FC
Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional football club based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England. They compete in the Premier League, t ...
CEO
Avram Glazer
Avram Avie Glazer (born October 19, 1960) is an American businessman. He is a member of the Glazer family (a son of Malcolm Glazer), who own the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL) and hold a majority ownership stake in E ...
. The team unveiled their name Desert Vipers, logo and jersey in January 2023, through their social media handles.
Current squad
* Players with international caps are listed in bold.
Statistics
Season summary
Administration and support staff
*Source
Sustainability
The Desert Vipers became the first cricket franchise in the world to make their full season carbon footprint public, when they published their Season 1 footprint of 573 tonnes of carbon dioxide in 2023. In Season 2, they hosted their first 'Sustainability Match', which aimed to celebrate their achievements to date and trial new sustainability initiatives. They are Dubai's first signatory to the United Nations Sports for Climate Action Framework, and they have committed to Net Zero by 2040.
Reference
{{International League T20
Cricket in the United Arab Emirates
Cricket clubs established in 2022