Zimbabwe's Taylor given three-year ban for corruption breach

Former Zimbabwe captain Brendan Taylor has been banned from all cricket for three and a half years by the International Cricket Council (ICC) after accepting a breach of anti-corruption rules.

Taylor revealed earlier in January that he was facing a ban, after admitting he received a $15,000 "deposit" for spot-fixing, though he claimed he was blackmailed and never went through with the arrangement.

The ban will prevent Taylor, who played in 34 Tests, 205 one-day internationals and 45 T20s before announcing his retirement from international cricket in September 2021, from being involved with cricket until July 28, 2025.

In addition to four breaches of the ICC anti-corruption code, the 35-year-old has been given a separate one-month ban by the ICC for an anti-doping violation, which resulted from a positive test for the stimulant Benzoylecognine, a cocaine metabolite.

In a statement posted on social media on January 24, Taylor claimed he was coerced into accepting the money from an Indian businessman in October 2019 and that it took him four months to report the incident to the ICC anti-corruption unit, because he feared for his safety.

Taylor travelled to India to discuss the launch of a new T20 competition in Zimbabwe with the promise of $15,000 as payment, with another $20,000 when the "spot-fixing" job was complete.

"Brendan is a former international captain who represented Zimbabwe for 17 years," ICC integrity unit general manager Alex Marshall said.

"Over such a long career, he participated in numerous anti-corruption and anti-doping education sessions and knew exactly what his obligations were under the ICC Anti-Corruption and Anti-Doping Codes.

"It is disappointing that a player of his experience chose not to