Brendan Taylor to retire from international cricket
Written by I Dig Sports
Published in
Cricket
Sunday, 12 September 2021 13:02
Zimbabwe's Brendan Taylor has decided to call time on his 17-year career. The 34-year old former captain and one of the most recognisable cricketers from his country will play his final match on Monday, against Ireland.
Taylor made his debut for Zimbabwe in 2004 and since rose to become one of the mainstays of the side. He did his best work in one-day international cricket, scoring 6677 runs from 204 matches, which leaves him tantalisingly close to becoming Zimbabwe's highest run-getter in the format. He already stands leagues ahead of any Zimbabwean with 11 ODI hundreds.
Taylor made the announcement on Instagram on Sunday.
"It's with a heavy heart that I'm announcing that tomorrow is my last game for my beloved country," he wrote. "17 year's of extreme highs and extreme lows and I wouldn't change it for the world.
"It's taught me to humble, to always remind myself how lucky I was to be in the position I was in for so long. To wear the badge with pride and leave everything on the field.
"My goal was to always leave the team in better position as to when I first arrived back in 2004 , I hope I have done that."
Taylor first captained the team between 2011 and 2014, before stepping in to fill the role again earlier this year. He was Zimbabwe's leading run-scorer at the 2015 World Cup, but left the national set-up following the tournament for a three-season spell as a Kolpak signing in county cricket with Nottinghamshire.
He walks away with 2320 runs from 24 Test matches and 934 runs from 45 T20Is.