Vipers Voices
This is the home of The Desert Vipers, the Twenty20 franchise side competing in the ILT20, the shortform tournament in the United Arab Emirates with its fourth edition in December 2025 and January 2026. For exclusive interviews and insight from the Desert Vipers camp, this is the place to be. This is Vipers Voices...
Vipers Voices
Tom Moody on player retentions & signings for DP World ILT20 Season 5 & lots more!
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This time we can confirm the players who have been retained and signed by the Vipers for Season 5 of the league.
The organisers have allowed a maximum of four retentions and direct signings ahead of a player auction in October and the players that are now on the Vipers books for a tilt at back-to-back titles are Andries Gous, Dan Lawrence, Shimron Hetmyer and Mujeeb Ur Rahman, the latter, the Afghanistan mystery spinner being the franchise’s direct signing.
Coming up we hear from Vipers Director of Cricket Tom Moody, who explains the thinking behind the retentions and the signing, as well as offering an explanation for some of the big names who don’t feature in the retained list and the challenges for the Vipers and other franchises in the face of league regulations relating to players for the coming season.
Tom also talks to us about the recent ExxonMobil Guyana Global Super League, which saw the Vipers finish third in the five-team event in Guyana, the first time the side had competed outside the UAE – and he discusses the prospect of the Vipers going back-to-back this season. Can the team become the first to retain the DP World ILT20 crown? Well, Tom lets us have his thoughts on that. It’s a great listen, as it always is when Tom speaks, and it’s well worth your time...
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