39-year-old Brendan Taylor to make Test return against New Zealand after serving 3.5-year ICC ban | Cricket News

Former Zimbabwe cricket captain Brendan Taylor, now 39, is making his international cricket comeback in the second Test against New Zealand. This follows his three-and-a-half-year suspension for violating the ICC’s anti-corruption code, which ended on July 25. He is expected to join Zimbabwe’s squad for the second Test starting August 7 in Bulawayo.“He’ll obviously be available for the second Test,” Zimbabwe captain Craig Ervine said of Taylor’s return to the side, as quoted from ANI.“But I also know how hard he’s worked in his capacity — especially over the last eight, ten (or) 12 months — in order for this to happen. I’m very excited to have him come back into the space in the next few days, and looking forward to what he has to contribute towards the team and the group.”Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!The 39-year-old Taylor has not participated in any representative cricket since his sudden retirement in September 2021. During his suspension, he was prohibited from training with national or domestic teams.Zimbabwe has already selected a 16-member squad for the New Zealand Test series. The team includes an experienced batting lineup and Tafadzwa Tsiga as the designated wicketkeeper-batter for the first Test.Taylor, who traditionally batted at number four in Tests, might return to this position if selected. This could lead to adjustments in the batting order, with players like Sean Williams moving down to strengthen the middle order.Taylor has acknowledged that he doesn’t expect an immediate return to the playing eleven. His return is focused on contributing to Zimbabwe cricket, which he admits he let down through his past actions.“I’ve been humbled properly,” Taylor said.

“I look forward to really just adding value, which I probably didn’t do to the best of my ability when I was there before.”Taylor’s cricket career includes 34 Test matches for Zimbabwe from 2004 to 2021, with an average of 36.25. He has scored six Test centuries, including a notable unbeaten 105 against Bangladesh in 2011.His return coincides with a busy period for Zimbabwe cricket. The team has played seven Tests this year with one victory and has four more scheduled against New Zealand and Afghanistan.While Taylor might not immediately feature in Zimbabwe’s T20 plans, he could potentially join the ODI team, particularly with the 2027 World Cup in consideration.His suspension resulted from failing to report a match-fixing offer, which was connected to an attempted blackmail involving cocaine use.