daniel chigunwe
MANY cricket fans around the globe were yesterday left shell-shocked after former Zimbabwe captain Brendan Taylor revealed that he will be hit with a multi-year ban by the International Cricket Council over his delayed reporting of a sport-fixing plot.
The 35-year-old wicket-keeper yesterday took to Twitter and revealed that he was blackmailed to engage in sport fixing by a group of Indian businessmen he met in October 2019, after they took photographs of him taking cocaine.
Taylor says he did not sport fix, but admits he did not report the incident to the International Cricket Council (ICC) for four months, which he accepts was “too long a time”.
He also wrote on Twitter that he will be checking into a rehabilitation centre to tackle his substance abuse issues from today.
Here are some of the reactions from the cricket following Taylor’s shocking letter on Twitter:
Tawie Joy@Bla_Taw: ‘’Akunyeba Brendan Taylor, I know an attempt at covering up when I see one. His story has too many holes, no wonder the ICC didn’t believe him. I read his statement and I can pick up things that are not logical.’’
KundaYi@princekadya: ‘’In which capacity does he travel to set up a local league? There are too many holes.’’
Sritama Panda (Ross Taylor’s Version) @cricketpun_duh: “This is ICC’s failure, not Brendan Taylor’s. Cricket has failed a genuine legend and he’s suffering.’’
Steve Vickers @SteveVickers5: ‘’A shocker from former Zimbabwe cricket captain Brendan Taylor — says he is checking into a drug rehab clinic tomorrow and that he is expecting a ban from International Cricket Council after being too slow to report an approach to fix matches. This will be a sad end to his career.’’
Ethel @Ethel86598733: ‘’ICC and ZC should condemn Brendan Taylor, he has let everyone down especially the fans.
ZC went out of their way to bring him back home from county cricket, they paid him a record US$20.8k/ month. I wouldn’t blame them for being disappointed in BT’s greed.’’
GhoseSpot@SandipGhose: Not disputing @BrendanTaylor86 claims — but USD$15 k (approx Rs 1 crore) is chicken s**t for any Indian businessman of standing in this day and age.
Must be a “chota-mota” fixer Face with tears of joyFace with tears of joy Wishing him a quick recovery in rehab. #BrendanTaylor.’’
Kyle@The_Kylo: ‘’Heartbreaking for Brendan Taylor. You can almost hear the regret and sadness in his statement.
These bookies are the scourge of the earth — taking advantage of someone in a very dark place. ICC is quick to ban players forever, but what are they doing to actually catch the filth?’’
Ritesh Banglani@banglani: ‘’I don’t see Brendan Taylor as a victim at all. He made poor judgment calls — traveling to India on a rather transparent ruse for a cash incentive, engaging in “discussions” with shady characters, doing drugs with them. This is more than an approach he failed to report.’’ Eleph ula-Ndebele@KomradeQuestion:
‘’The take away from Brendan Taylor’s statement is don’t do cocaine with strangers.’’
Anand Vasu@anandvasu: ‘’At this time of extreme stress and difficulty cricket must stand with Brendan Taylor. He should have known better.
Has admitted as much. What he needs now is empathy not judgment.’’
KingsOfTomorrow@Tawana4Real: ‘’Not to stick my nose in your business, but you have to draw the line somewhere.’’
Melinda Farrell@melindafarrell: ‘’This is such a sad story and it takes a lot of courage to front up publicly and admit to addiction and the mistakes and repercussions that follow. I wish @BrendanTaylor86 the very best in his recovery.’’
Rajdeep Singh@CricRajdeep: ‘’Heartbreaking, all the love to Brendan Taylor,may he get past all this and start a fresh new chapter in his life.’’ — The Guardian/Sports Reporter
Online Reporter