Brendan also revealed that the frauds made him consume drugs and they had pictured the whole incident in order to blackmail him later.
Former Zimbabwe captain Brendan Taylor shocked one and all as he took to Twitter on Monday (January 27) and made a major revelation. In a lengthy statement, the cricketer stated that he was allegedly blackmailed into spot-fixing by an 'Indian businessman' and revealed how he was tricked into doping and blackmailed later.
According to the cricketer, all this had a severe impact on his physical and mental health and said he will be undergoing rehabilitation on January 25 to get his life on the right track. The incident dates back to October 2019, when the Zimbabwe players were reeling with financial crisis after the national board failed to pay the fees.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) had in fact suspended Zimbabwe after the country's cricket board - Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) - was unable to keep out the government's interference with the board's administration away.
It was such a time that- according to the former captain - an 'Indian businessman' had approached Taylor regarding sponsorships and the potential launch of a T20 competition in his country. The cricketer was also given a sum of INR USD$15 000 for his visit to India.
However, all this had led to the veteran cricketer facing a 'multi-year' ban from the International Cricket Council (ICC) for a four-month delay in reporting the approach.
Brendan Taylor's lengthy message:
"I can't deny I was a little wary. But the timing was such that we hadn't been paid for 6 months by Zimbabwe cricket and it was questionable whether Zimbabwe would be able to continue playing in the international arena. So I made the journey. The discussions took place, as he had said, and on our last night in the hotel, the businessman and his colleagues took me for a celebratory dinner," wrote Taylor in the statement.
Brendan also revealed that the frauds made him consume drugs and they had pictured the whole incident in order to blackmail him later.
"We had drinks and during the course of the evening they openly offered me cocaine, which they themselves engaged in, and I foolishly took the bait," stated Taylor.
"The following morning, the same men stormed into my hotel room and showed me a video taken of me the night before doing cocaine and told me that if I did not spot fix at international matches for them, the video would be released to the public," he added.
While the whole incident had put the cricketer in a terrible mental space, he claimed of not being involved in any sort of fixing.
"I would like to place on record that I have never been involved in any form of match-fixing. I may be many things but I am not a cheat. My love for the beautiful game of cricket far outweighs and surpasses any threats which could be thrown my way," the 35-year-old added.
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