Former Pakistan spinner Zafar Gohar has signed a two-year contract with Middlesex, marking his shift to a local player after obtaining British citizenship. Gohar, who previously spent four seasons with Gloucestershire as an overseas signing, now qualifies to play domestically in the UK. The left-arm spinner last represented Pakistan in 2021, earning a single Test cap in Christchurch, along with an ODI appearance against England in 2015.
Middlesex’s managing director of cricket, Alan Coleman, expressed enthusiasm for the addition, highlighting Gohar’s potential impact. “Zafar is a player that we have admired for some time now and have been keeping a watchful eye on. We are delighted to have secured his services as a local cricketer for the next two seasons,” Coleman said.
Coleman emphasized the strategic role Gohar will play for Middlesex, enhancing their wicket-taking ability across all conditions in Championship cricket and adding valuable experience to the white-ball teams. “The addition of someone like Zafar to our squad adds not only quality, but also invaluable experience, and our young spinners will benefit enormously from having him in the playing group,” he added.
Gohar, who has 118 wickets at an average of 31.71 in first-class cricket with Gloucestershire, as well as valuable contributions in List A and T20 formats, expressed his excitement about joining Middlesex and playing at Lord’s. “I’m thrilled to be joining Middlesex and making Lord’s my home ground for the next two years. The opportunity to contribute to both the red-ball and white-ball teams formed a big part of my decision to make Middlesex my home,” he stated.
With Gohar’s experience and skills, Middlesex aims to strengthen their bowling unit and add depth in both red-ball and white-ball formats for the 2025 season.