The former skipper, who battled drug and alcohol addiction, was banned by ICC's anti-corruption in 2021.
Veteran Zimbabwe wicketkeeper-batter Brendan Taylor on Thursday created history by making a resolute return to international cricket after a hiatus of three-and-a-half years.
It was an emotional comeback for the 39-year-old Taylor as he opened the batting for the hosts in place of Ben Curran at the Queen Sports Club in Bulawayo in the second Test against New Zealand.
Taylor has not played international cricket since 2021. What followed was a turbulent chapter, struggles with alcohol and drug addiction, a shocking revelation of being blackmailed by fixers, and a ban of three-and-a-half years for breaching the ICC's anti-corruption code. He admitted to his mistakes, and checked himself into rehab when the ban was made public in early 2022.
The former skipper's ban ended last month and he was immediately named in the Playing XI for the final Test of the two-match series, which New Zealand lead 1-0.
"How good is it that three years ago, I couldn't get out of bed and now I'm here doing what I love, and that's representing Zimbabwe?" Taylor was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.
"Dealing with the sanction, dealing with my own internal chaos - there was not a specific day, there were multiple days of trauma."
"I was in the dark depths in the abyss and trying to just get through this total and incomprehensible demoralisation of life. It was incredibly difficult," he said.
During his time away from cricket, Taylor set up a small coaching facility at his home, hoping to help the next generation.
However, in a turn of events, Zimbabwe Cricket's Managing Director Givemore Makoni encouraged Taylor to return to the field.
"There's always that shame and guilt of letting down your family. That's a tough thing to deal with. But the way my family rallied and supported me was overwhelming. It's almost a regret why I didn't lean on them earlier. There are a few people in Zimbabwe Cricket that I have to thank, especially the chairman and the MD, who have been absolutely pivotal in their support to having me back," he said.
"I felt it was something I got myself into and I needed to fix it myself. I thought the dream had gone and I was content with it. Then came the joys and promises of recovery, something that is very dear to me. Getting my life back on track is the reason why I'm able to be here. If I had not made that life-changing decision, none of this would have been possible," he added.
Playing his 35th Test, Taylor overtook England pacer James Anderson for the longest Test career - in terms of years - among cricketers who made their debut in the 21st century. Only Sachin Tendulkar has a longer Test career than Taylor, having appeared in 200 Tests during a career spanning just over 24 years.
The third highest all-time run-getter for Zimbabwe, Taylor played 34 Tests between 2004 and 2021 with an average of 36.25. He has scored six centuries, including a second-innings 105 not out against Bangladesh in Harare in 2011.
During this period, he scored 9,938 international runs across all three formats of the game, which includes 17 centuries and 57 half-centuries.
On Thursday, he started tentatively, edging a short ball from Jacob Duffy over the head of the wicketkeeper to fine leg boundary for four.
But Taylor grew in confidence and played some exquisite shots on both sides of the wicket, showing no sign that he stayed away from the sport for such a long period. He scored 44 off 107 balls, studded with six boundaries, before he was caught by Mitchell Santner off Matt Henry's bowling.
Taylor had a chance to make his comeback more memorable as he was only 62 runs away from completing 10,000 runs in international cricket.
He now needs 18 runs to become only the third Zimbabwe batter to hit the 10,000-mark after legendary Andy Flower and Grant Flower, who tallied 11,580 and 10,028 runs in their respective international careers.