Desert Vipers have suffered a major setback. Star batsman Shimron Hetmyer has been ruled out of the remainder of the tournament due to a hamstring injury. Hetmyer suffered the injury during a match against the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders earlier this week. Former England batsman Jason Roy has been included in the Vipers’ squad in his place.
Hetmyer has played all seven matches for the Vipers so far this season, although his batting performance has been poor. He scored just 111 runs in six innings at an average of 18.50, but his strike rate was 160.86. His highest score during this period was 48, which he scored off 25 balls against Abu Dhabi on December 5th.
Jason Roy all set to take the place of Shimron Hetmyer
Jason Roy recently made his ILT20 debut after playing three matches for Pokhara Avengers in the Nepal Premier League, scoring 68 runs at an average of 34. Prior to this, Roy captained the Royal Champs team in the Abu Dhabi T10 League. Roy also has experience playing ILT20. In 2024, he played two matches for Abu Dhabi Knight Riders (ADKR), while the following season, he played 12 matches for Sharjah Warriors, scoring 298 runs at an average of 29.80.
Desert Vipers Director of Cricket Tom Moody said, “The loss of an experienced and quality player like Shimron is disappointing, as he played a positive role for the team this season. However, the addition of an experienced player like Jason Roy significantly fills that void.”
He further added, “Jason fits every need for us. He has a thorough understanding of the format. He is a versatile batsman who can bat in different ways. He gives us options both up and down the batting order. He also has ILT20 experience.”
Desert Vipers currently lead the points table, having won six of their seven matches. This week’s one-run loss against the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders was their first defeat of the tournament, having previously won six in a row.