Home / News / Desert Vipers Unveil Sustainability Kit for ILT20 Season 5
Desert Vipers Unveil Sustainability Kit for ILT20 Season 5
Desert Vipers have unveiled a new sustainability kit for Season 5 of the DP World ILT20, a shirt made entirely from recycled materials and carrying an updated set of biodiversity stripes. The kit will be worn in the franchise's annual Sustainability Match, turning one league fixture into a statement about the natural world.
The kit was launched at the second Global Biodiversity Alliance conference in Georgetown, Guyana, where West Indies batter Shimron Hetmyer presented the shirt and handed a signed jersey and bat to Guyana's president, Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali, in recognition of the country's support for the franchise's environmental work.
What the stripes mean
The centrepiece of the design is the updated Global Biodiversity Stripes, created by Professor Miles Richardson of the University of Derby using data from the Zoological Society of London and the World Wildlife Fund. Each stripe charts the state of global wildlife populations in a given year, and together they trace the decline in biodiversity recorded since 1970.
On the back of the shirt, the stripes rise from grey to green. The shift is deliberate: grey marks what has been lost, while green stands for the hope that nature can recover where serious efforts are made to protect and restore it. The latest version of the stripes draws on updated findings from the 2026 Living Planet Report, refreshing a design that first appeared on the Vipers' Sustainability Match kit in Season 4.
The message behind the shirt is summed up in the franchise's campaign line, Without Nature, There Is No Sport. It is a reminder that cricket, like every outdoor game, depends on a healthy natural world, from the grass under the players' feet to the climate that makes a season possible.
The first sports team in the alliance
The launch venue was no accident. The Vipers are the first sports organisation to join the Global Biodiversity Alliance, becoming its 133rd signatory, and the Guyana conference put that membership on a diplomatic stage. The alliance brings together governments, businesses, communities and scientists around the protection and restoration of nature, and the Vipers have used their place in it to carry a sporting voice into rooms where environmental policy is shaped.
Hetmyer's role at the launch underlines how the franchise treats its players as ambassadors for the cause, not just wearers of the shirt. Presenting the signed jersey and bat to President Ali linked the kit to the wider campaign the Vipers ran in Guyana during the year, taking cricket-led nature education out into local communities.
When the kit takes the field
Fans will see the kit in action on 6 December, when the Vipers face Dubai Capitals in the Season 5 Sustainability Match at Dubai International Stadium. The fixture is the 21st match of the season and falls in the second half of the league stage, giving the campaign a prime evening slot in Dubai.
The Vipers head into Season 5 as defending champions, having lifted the trophy in Season 4, and the kit launch follows a busy pre-season for the franchise, which recently brought back Hasan Nawaz for the new campaign. The season opens on 21 November, with the Vipers beginning their title defence against MI Emirates in Dubai, and runs through to the final on 20 December.
For supporters planning to follow the season, the full broadcast guide explains where every match can be watched, including the Sustainability Match itself.
A tradition, not a one-off
The Sustainability Match has become a fixed point in the Vipers' calendar, and the kit is the most visible part of it. In Season 4 the players wore a green kit carrying the first version of the biodiversity stripes, and the Season 5 shirt builds directly on that design rather than starting from scratch. The continuity matters: by returning to the same theme each year, the franchise is building a recognisable tradition instead of a single gesture.
That steady approach is also why the launch drew attention beyond cricket. A franchise using a league fixture to talk about wildlife decline, on a stage shared with heads of state and scientists, is still rare in professional sport. The Vipers have made it part of their identity, and the Season 5 kit is the latest chapter in a story that began long before this season's first ball.
FAQs
When will Desert Vipers wear the sustainability kit?
The kit will be worn in the Season 5 Sustainability Match against Dubai Capitals on 6 December at Dubai International Stadium.
What are the Global Biodiversity Stripes?
They are a design by Professor Miles Richardson of the University of Derby, built from Zoological Society of London and World Wildlife Fund data, showing the decline in global wildlife populations since 1970. The stripes rise from grey to green on the back of the shirt, symbolising hope that nature can recover.
Where was the Season 5 sustainability kit unveiled?
The kit was launched at the second Global Biodiversity Alliance conference in Georgetown, Guyana, where Shimron Hetmyer presented the shirt and gave a signed jersey and bat to Guyana's president, Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali.
What is the Desert Vipers sustainability kit made from?
The special edition kit is made entirely from recycled materials.
What does Without Nature, There Is No Sport mean?
It is the Desert Vipers' campaign message, expressing the idea that sport depends on a healthy natural world and that fans and teams alike have a part to play in protecting and restoring nature.
Have Desert Vipers worn a sustainability kit before?
Yes. The biodiversity stripes first appeared on the Vipers' Sustainability Match kit in Season 4, and the Season 5 shirt updates that design with findings from the 2026 Living Planet Report.
Related articles
Desert Vipers Bring Back Hasan Nawaz for ILT20 Season 5
A title-winning squad member returns as the champions' replacement pick.
Gulf Giants Sign Akeal Hosein as Wild-Card Pick for Season 5
A proven league spinner joins the Giants' attack for Season 5.
ILT20 Season 5 Teams: Strengths and Weaknesses
Six squads, the lean of each list, and the holes that are still real.
ILT20 Auction and Retention Analysis for Season 5
The fees we will print, and the leftovers we will not.