Zafar Gohar missed his chance of playing Test cricket against England because he overslept, but hopes time is now on his side after switching allegiance in a bid to join the Bazball revolution.
Gohar, 30, is the most prolific spinner in the County Championship this season, one which began with him signing a declaration to play for England.
He is featuring as a local cricketer for Middlesex after receiving a British passport and meets the ICC’s eligibility criteria for changing countries as the second of his two caps for Pakistan came more than three years ago. The only thing left is confirmation of the date from which he becomes available.
So, what led to the slow left-armer staying in the UK the past two winters to meet the 210-days-a-year residency requirement? The simple answer is: opportunity — and lack of it elsewhere.
Disillusionment with Pakistani cricket stems back to a farcical episode in October 2015 when he was plucked from a domestic match to make his debut against Alastair Cook’s team as an injury replacement for Yasir Shah. So last-minute was the call, however, that he did not make it on to the field next day.
‘I missed the flight,’ Gohar tells Mail Sport. ‘I was playing a four-day match in Faisalabad and at tea on the second day, they told me to go home to Lahore two hours away, grab my things, and wait for them to tell me when the flight to the UAE was, because in those days that is where Pakistan home matches were played.
Zafar Gohar has detailed how he recovered from a missed opportunity to face England to now bidding to play for the Three Lions
The spin bowler overslept and missed his flight to play for Pakistan in a test match in 2015
This led to disillusionment with Pakistan cricket, whom Gohar made only two appearances for
‘The flight was booked for 3am the next morning, but I needed a visa and the embassies were closed. I waited around until one o’clock for news and literally said to them, “Look, I need to sleep”. I was told to go to bed and keep my phone with me, but I couldn’t wake up. I was just so tired. Next morning, they put everything on me.
‘To be fair, it was a dream come true in that moment, at the age of 20, so I felt very low for the next few weeks, but after speaking to different mentors and my family, I decided to just keep quiet about what happened. Now, I am pretty comfortable to speak about it.’
The next disappointment followed a month later. Visa issued, Gohar dismissed Alex Hales and Joe Root in the third one-day international, returning respectable figures of 10-0-54-2 in a six-wicket defeat. He was never picked in the format again.
His only other appearance for Pakistan came in 2021 when picked as an all-rounder at Christchurch, scoring 71 runs with the bat, but going wicketless. Then he got the news he did not want to hear.
Gohar continues: ‘The new chief selector, Mohammad Wasim, rang me, saying, “I think you need time”. I was like, not again. You need time after only one game? In 2022 I got 47 wickets for Gloucestershire in the Championship, and 500 runs, and I was player of the year. When I went back and played in Pakistan, I took my total of five-fors to seven in one year, playing 14 first-class games.
‘But the chief selector said, “I don’t care how well you do in county cricket or anywhere, because I don’t consider those performances when I am picking players”.
‘It was heartbreaking. Imagine you’re trying to play international cricket, and you get told they don’t care whatever you do, you’re not going to get picked. I’d heard England was the toughest place for spinners to get wickets but I got wickets. That was the point I decided, right, I’m going to take my chance. I know it’s a big, big ask to get picked for England, but I love challenges.’
It was with his father, Ali, that he would stay up late watching the 2005 Ashes as a 10-year-old. Now, he calls Lord’s, where that iconic series began, home. So welcome did Gloucestershire make him feel over four seasons as an overseas player that he did not want to leave, but now says of his move to Middlesex: ‘It was the best decision I made in my life. I grew up thinking about this place. It’s like a heaven in cricket.’
Now, the 30-year-old plays as a local cricketer for Middlesex after receiving a British passport
Gohar meets the ICC’s eligibility criteria for changing countries and hopes to play for England
His 15 wickets for Middlesex at an average of 29 put him four ahead of the field when it came to spinners during the first four weeks of the 2025 Championship. A career batting average of 23 will also count in his favour should the selectors consider Gohar in the same way as Rob Key, the ECB’s men’s director of cricket, said they would Surrey’s recently qualified Australian, Dan Worrall.
And Gohar feels ready, saying: ‘Pitches in Pakistan are much slower and flatter, so we have to be so good with our line and length and variations. If you bowl in tough situations, you learn a lot, so even at this time of year I don’t see much trouble bowling in England.
‘When I was young, I got told I was very talented, but it was too early in my 20s to play international cricket, that spinners always grow up in their late 20s. So, I reckon I’ve just hit the perfect age.’
