Revealed: Why Zimbabwe Have Excluded Brendan Taylor From Playing XI For 1st T20I Vs SL

Brendan Taylor [Source: @TUnlimitedd/X]

In a significant development, Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to bowl first in the inaugural game of the three-match T20I series at Harare Sports Club. The visitors handed debut T20I caps to Nuwanidu Fernando and Dushan Hemantha, while Zimbabwe excluded several big names, including Brendan Taylor. 

Why Brendan Taylor Isn't In Zimbabwe XI For 1st T20I vs SL

Talismanic batter Brendan Taylor grabbed a million eyeballs as he made a T20I comeback after a four-year hiatus. However, in a surprising turn of events, the veteran cricketer couldn't make it into Zimbabwe's first-choice playing XI. 

At toss, Zimbabwe captain Sikandar Raza revealed that Taylor is carrying a niggle, which is why he won't feature in the first T20I of the series. 

"It's for us to find the right combination. We also have three T20Is against Namibia before the Qualifiers. We have to be the best team in the Qualifiers to get into the World Cup. We have done well. We were on the verge of winning both the games. Hopefully, we cross the line today and the result will be sweeter. BT (Brendan Taylor) and Wellington Masakadza and still carrying the niggles. So they miss out and we are going with four pacers," Raza said. 

Taylor, who has scored more than 10000 international runs for Zimbabwe, hasn't been at his best since making a comeback. After scoring just 51 runs across two innings in the Test match against New Zealand, Taylor had an ordinary ODI series against the Lankans, managing only 20 runs, including a three-ball duck. 

Zimbabwe's Playing XI For 1st T20I vs SL

Brian Bennett, Tadiwanashe Marumani (wk), Sean Williams, Sikandar Raza (c), Ryan Burl, Tony Munyonga, Tashinga Musekiwa, Brad Evans, Tinotenda Maposa, Richard Ngarava, Blessing Muzarabani

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