Taylor on his second coming with Zimbabwe cricket and says the experience is ‘A debut-like feeling’ for him.
Taylor grateful for second chance with Zimbabwe.
The return to international cricket for Brendan Taylor has been compared to “a debut-like feeling,” ahead of Zimbabwe’s second Test match against New Zealand in Bulawayo.
After serving a three-and-a-half-year ban for violating the ICC’s anti-corruption rule, Taylor, who talked in May about his battles with alcohol and drug addiction, his sentence, and his future aspirations, returned to Zimbabwe’s starting lineup with a fresh lease on life.
“How good is it that three years ago, I couldn’t get out of bed and now I am here doing what I love, and that’s representing Zimbabwe?” Taylor told the broadcaster in an emotional interview before the first day’s play. “Dealing with the sanction, dealing with my own internal chaos – there was not a specific day, there were multiple days of trauma.
“I was in the dark depths in the abyss and trying to just get through this total and incomprehensible demoralisation of life. It was incredibly difficult.”
Seven months after Taylor’s sudden retirement from international cricket in Belfast in 2021, he disclosed that he had been approached by fixers who threatened to expose his cocaine use unless he followed their instructions. When his ban was revealed in early 2022, he declined to do so, retired, and subsequently checked himself into a recovery facility. Due to the terms of his penalty, Taylor was unable to participate in any official cricketing structures. He then established a coaching facility in his house with the intention of transitioning into coaching upon his return.
“There’s always that shame and guilt of letting down your family. That’s a tough thing to deal with. But the way my family rallied and supported me was overwhelming. It’s almost a regret why I didn’t lean on them earlier.”