I am having a problem with vmrun

This command works almost as it should (the vm does start):

vmrun -T player start '/vm/strategy.local/strategy.local.vmx'

...except there is this error message once the VM is running: ."Error: Cannot connect to the virtual machine"

However, when a VM is indeed running, these commands don't: 

vmrun -T player list
"Total running VMs: 0"

vmrun -T player stop '/vm/strategy.local/strategy.local.vmx'
"Error: The virtual machine is not powered on: /m2/vm/strategy.local/strategy.local.vmx"

Operating system: Linux Mint 5.15.0-41-generic x86_46

Vmware player v 16.2.3 V

Mware VIX vmrun version 1.17.0 build-6661328

Any insights as to the cause / resolution greatly appreciated.