Zohaib Khan, a talented all-rounder from Peshawar, has been active on the domestic circuit for the last 9 years but he had been relatively unheard off until recently when he successfully led his team, the Peshawar Panthers, to victory against the much fancied Lahore Lions in the final of the Haier National T20 Cup to win their first ever domestic T20 title, bringing much needed spotlight to unsung talent from the city. 

A slow left arm bowler and right handed batsman, Zohaib has played 65 first class games and has made 2506 runs at an average of 33.40 to go with 143 wickets at an average of 27.50, though it’s with the ball that he’s made more of an impact in the shorter formats where he averages 23.50 and 22 in the fifty and twenty over formats. In the recently concluded Haier National T20 Cup, Zohaib picked up 7 wickets from 6 games to help his team win the title.

In an exclusive interview with PakPassion.net, Zohaib discussed his team's unexpected triumph in the Haeir National T20 Cup, the enthusiasm for Cricket in the Peshawar region despite the lack of facilities and speaks about his personal aspirations to represent Pakistan.

By Amir Husain (16th October, 2014)

PakPassion.net: What were your expectations at the start of the Haier National T20 Cup? 

Zohaib Khan: We never expected to win the tournament but we had decided that we would all play competitive cricket, come what may. This is how we had prepared ourselves and this is what we put into practice once on the field. After the first two matches, it became apparent to us that we had the ability to progress to the final stages of this tournament.


PakPassion.net: What would you say was the secret of Peshawar Panthers' success against other established teams in the Haier T20 Cup, most of which contained some well known international players?

Zohaib Khan: The main ingredient for our success was the unity in our team. This quality is enough to overcome any obstacle. On top of that, all selection was done based on merit even though we had lot of external pressure to not follow this policy. However, we stuck to this policy and said that only those with good performances under their belts will be selected. This way, all our players were concentrated on performing on the field instead of worrying about other issues. However, I will come back to the unity aspect and say that even captains from other teams were commenting and appreciating our unity and teamwork where each member of the team was rising above themselves to help the team in winning the tournament.


PakPassion.net: Who, in your view, are players from the Peshawar Panthers who can make the leap from domestic to international cricket?

Zohaib Khan: Certainly there are such players and I would like to specially mention the names of Imran Khan, Adil Amin and Israrullah as well as Mohammad Rizwan - all of whom could easily make it to the international side based on their fine performances during Haier T20 Cup. Although, Rizwan was not part of the squad in the recent tournament, it is clear that if all of these players continue to work hard then there is no doubt that they can play for Pakistan one day.


PakPassion.net: Do you feel disappointed to note that some of the Peshawar born players, such as Umar Gul, are not playing for Peshawar and helping the team to even more glory?

Zohaib Khan: I have to admit that this is very disappointing. In the past, I have spoken on many occasions with Younis Khan and asked him to come back and work with the team but I guess, he is well settled elsewhere and cannot make that move back to Peshawar. That said, I am still very pleased with our performance and can only thank the Almighty for helping us win this title and I will also add that our doors are always welcome to Younis if he wishes to come back and help us in the future.


PakPassion.net: How beneficial was winning the Haier T20 Cup for cricket in the Peshawar area?

Zohaib Khan: First of all, let’s be clear that history was created with Peshawar competing and winning for the first time in a tournament which featured eighteen of the top teams of the country. Our first real wish is that we should be chosen and sent for the next Champions League tournament. 

Although the PCB has made statements to that effect, we are doubtful that this will happen which will be a shame. This kind of international exposure will be excellent for our team so that we can showcase our talent at the international level as well. 


PakPassion.net: What is the secret behind Peshawar producing so many extremely talented cricketers?

Zohaib Khan: The fact of the matter is that cricketers from our region are fearless! All they need is for people to have confidence in them and they will literally take on any challenge and I am not talking about just cricket here.


PakPassion.net: Given that the cricketers from Peshawar have a reputation for being headstrong, how difficult is it to captain such a team? How were you able to unite them and make them champions?

Zohaib Khan: I have worked really hard on this very aspect of sincerity and unity in the team. This is something that had gone missing since the days of our old captain Ashraf Khan. When these two traits are present in the team, then all other issues become insignificant. This is all we talked about in our team meetings and we also made it clear we expected our players to play and behave with these two qualities in mind. After that, whether we won or lost was up to the will of the Almighty. I suppose if we stress on these kinds of qualities then players concentrate more on their performance and less on irrelevant things. 


PakPassion.net: What are the facilities like in Peshawar region for school and domestic level players?

Zohaib Khan: To be honest, we have next to nothing to speak of in terms of facilities. Even for this tournament, we didn’t get a ground to practice on but had to do with making our preparations at a local academy. Most of the grounds in Peshawar area, two or three of them, are usually busy as there are matches going on so we had a tough time trying to find places to practice.

As for the grassroots level, the issue of facilities is even worse. However, given our historic success without proper facilities, one can only wonder what talent would have been exposed and developed and what we can or could have achieved if we had better amenities at our disposal.

I really feel that if the PCB puts some effort in investing in our cricket, then we surely do much more with our talent. I urge the PCB to invest in Peshawar cricket. Peshawar is a big city and it only has three grounds which is a shame. We have one field which is part of the Peshawar University, another which is not available at all times and the third one is the Arbab Niaz Stadium which is a very difficult place to procure for practice.


PakPassion.net: Given an opportunity to speak with PCB Chairman Mr. Shahryar Khan, what would you say to him about helping cricket flourish in the Peshawar region?

Zohaib Khan: My only request to Shahryar sahib would be to create more cricket fields for us to play on. I believe this is the reason why we don’t have many tournaments being organized in this part of the country. When we do have such tournaments, they seem to go on forever as we don’t have that many grounds to complete all of the matches in a short period of time. Having more grounds will result in more tournaments and inclusion of more teams, thus resulting in more talent being exposed to the outside world.

I can tell you that if the grounds are there and we have some high profile tournaments, the people will flock to see these games and grounds will have packed houses. Just look at what happened when Imran Khan organized the games for the benefit of the IDPs which featured current and veteran players. There was hardly any place to sit in the ground with people unable to get into the ground due to there being no space – such was the enthusiasm to watch cricket amongst the ordinary citizens. Can you imagine the intensity in the crowds, if a game with a higher profile was held in Peshawar? 


PakPassion.net: Can you shed some more light on the passion for cricket in Peshawar?

Zohaib Khan: It cannot be described in words! Even for a normal first-class game which lasts for 4 days, we have people coming in large numbers from different cities to watch and support teams. Just imagine what the crowds would be like if there was a T20 game? The fact is that people love to watch cricket and appreciate sport in general.
I would also add that due to our victory in the recently concluded Haier T20 Cup, the passion for cricket has hit new heights amongst the local population which is really heartening.


PakPassion.net: What route do players take to get to the first-class level in the Peshawar region? Is it from school level to Under 15, to Under 19, Grade II and then to first-class, as is the case in other places?

Zohaib Khan: There isn’t much happening at the school level. Most players who appear on the scene at the first-class come via a self-help route where they play for local clubs and then get noticed due to good performances, thereby moving up to the next level. 

I do believe that the club cricket system has to be a strong one to provide a steady stream of high quality players to the first-class level. In England, I know that school and grassroots level is very strong and that club level cricket is very strong and is well respected. This is the prime reason why they seem to have a really good supply of quality players. 


PakPassion.net: This season, you are playing for ZTBL which is one of the strongest teams in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy. What goals have you set for yourself in this season?

Zohaib Khan: There is no doubt that the ZTBL team is one of the strongest teams in Pakistan domestic cricket and to perform in that team is a huge achievement as it does contain some big names. The fact is that I am playing in this tournament for one reason alone which is to be noticed by the national selectors and to represent Pakistan at the international level. I feel that my form is very good at the moment and all I need is a chance to prove that I have the talent to succeed at the highest level.

Discuss!