Brendan Taylor eyes international cricket return after corruption ban
What's the story
Former Zimbabwe captain Brendan Taylor is eyeing a return to international cricket after serving a three-and-a-half-year ban for breaching the ICC's anti-corruption code.
The 39-year-old cricketer will be eligible to play again on July 25 this year.
Initially eyeing a coaching role, Taylor has been convinced by Zimbabwe Cricket's Managing Director Givemore Makoni to play with an aim to feature in the co-hosted 2027 ODI World Cup.
Rehabilitation
Taylor's journey: From addiction to comeback
Taylor, who admitted to drug and alcohol addiction struggles, was approached by match-fixers who filmed him doing cocaine. He opted for retirement over cooperating with them in September 2021.
Four months later, he reported the matter to the ICC and went public in January 2022.
After the revelation, Taylor spent 90 days at a rehabilitation center in Nyanga region of Zimbabwe's Mozambique border. Since then he has been clean and gradually returning to training.
Commitment
Training under restrictions: Taylor's dedication to return
Due to the terms of his sanction, Taylor hasn't been able to play any officially recognized cricket or train with domestic or international sides.
He has been training at St John's College in Harare, an elite independent school, nearly twice daily.
"There's lots of work to do, but I feel like I'm there," he said, as per ESPNcricinfo. "I'm not far off. I've been doing some batting and I need to incorporate some fielding and some keeping work because I've got four months."
Outlook
Taylor's future plans and aspirations
While Taylor won't be cleared to play Zimbabwe's Test against England in May, he hopes to feature in a home series against New Zealand in August.
He also expressed interest in participating in the Africa Regional Qualifiers for next year's T20 World Cup.
"I see myself definitely playing Tests and ODIs," he said about his future plans. "With T20s, that's probably something I would have to really try and sharpen myself up at."
Stats
A look at Taylor's stats for Zimbabwe across formats
In 34 Tests for Zimbabwe, Taylor scored 2,320 runs at 36.25 with the help of six tons and 12 fifties.
In 205 ODIs, the batter has managed 6,684 runs at 35.55. He has 11 tons and 39 fifties.
In 45 T20Is, he owns 934 runs at 23.94. He has 6 fifties under his belt.