Auckland: It's not an easy decision to quit international cricket at the age of 29 but Brendan Taylor had to take the tough decision keeping in mind his family's needs, which won't happen if he continues playing Tests and ODIs for his home country.
Stand-in-skipper Taylor, who has 5120 runs in 166 ODIs, will be playing his last international game against India tomorrow as he is migrating with his family to Nottingham in England to play county cricket.
<img title="Brendan Taylor" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2015/mar/taylor13mar.jpg" alt="Brendan Taylor" />Brendan Taylor. Pic/ AFP
Asked how emotional he would be when he steps out to play against India for the last time in a Zimbabwean jersey, Taylor said, "Tough question for me to answer because it hasn't been an easy decision to make. I just want to go there and try to better myself as a cricketer, and at the end of the day, we're all trying to provide for families, and to me that's very important," said, Taylor during the pre-match media conference, which was mainly dominated by questions on his decision to quit international cricket.
"Yes, international cricket has always been the pinnacle for me, but it's something that I discussed with my family and my wife, and after two to three months of doing that, I decided to go and play in England," he added. "I think all players tend to try and maximise a little bit. When you've got kids at home, you want to try and make sure they've got the best sort of upbringing that you can give them. That all sort of prompted the decision. It's a three-year decision."
"I don't think everything is lost after England, whether I continue to play on after those three years in England or come back to Zimbabwe. That's all too far ahead," said Taylor giving ample hints that he would go the Murray Goodwin way after signing a Kolpak deal with the Nottinghamshire county agreement and is unlikely to play again for his home country.
Taylor termed his nearly 11-year journey in international cricket as a "thoroughly enjoyable one". "It's been fairly enjoyable the 11 years that I've been extremely grateful for. Every player's dream is to represent him country, and I've been lucky enough to do that. We've had some tough losses, but we've slowly evolved and managed to sneak a few great ones in for us.
"It's been thoroughly enjoyable. Sad for me that it'll be ending, but I'm very proud to be a Zimbabwean, I'm very proud to represent my country on a great stage tomorrow to finish up and hopefully end on a high note," am emotional Taylor said.
For Taylor, the fondest memory in his international career was Test victory against Bangladesh after being in isolation for five years. "My fondest memory has to be our first Test win against Bangladesh. Being in isolation for five years and coming back and winning our first Test match was an incredible feeling, and then also winning another Test against Pakistan. Those are two that stand out for me personally," Taylor said.

It's not an easy decision to quit international cricket at the age of 29 but Brendan Taylor had to take the tough decision keeping in mind his family's needs, which won't happen if he continues playing

My family requirements prompted me to retire: Brendan Taylor

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My family requirements prompted me to retire: Brendan Taylor

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