Imran Khan: From international playboy to prime minister of Pakistan
His country is now on the brink of nuclear war but cricket star turned Pakistan ruler Imran Khan once made headlines for a different reason.
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Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan sent chills across the world this week with a warning that tensions between his country and India could escalate to the brink of nuclear war.
The downing of two Indian warplanes over the disputed region of Kashmir has seen relations between the rival nations plummet to the lowest point in decades, with both sides launching air strikes.
It has been a baptism of fire for Khan, who was elected to Pakistan’s highest office last year after a 22 year campaign.
But before he got into politics, Khan was a world class cricketer who counted Princess Diana as a friend and married into one of Britain’s richest families.
Born with the dashing good looks of a Hollywood leading man, Khan was also blessed with brains, reading philosophy, economics and politics at Oxford, where he was captain of the university cricket team.
By 1981, Khan was captaining the national side, having developed a fearsome reputation as one of the world’s fastest bowlers. He was named 1989-10 International Cricketer of the Year and went on to lead Pakistan to victory in the 1992 World Cup.
For all his sporting prowess, Khan always made the biggest headlines off the field, becoming a darling of the London social scene and dating a string of sultry brunettes and aristocratic blondes — including billionaire heiress Jemima Goldsmith, whom he would later wed.
Australians were not immune to his charms either and there’s no way to better to illustrate that than in the words of leg spinner Kerry O’Keeffe, who tells one of the greatest Khan anecdotes ever.
O’Keeffe played alongside Khan when the Pakistani all-rounder turned out for New South Wales and grade club Sydney University during the 1984-1985 season.
Khan would make just seven appearances for the club side during his time in Australia but one match against North Sydney in December 1984 went down in folklore.
In episode 9 of his hilarious 2017 YouTube series The Kerry O’Keeffe Show, he recalled how Khan had caught the attention of a particularly glamorous blonde spectator at University Oval.
“She only had eyes for one player and it wasn’t happily married Uni captain Mick O’Sullivan with five daughters,” O’Keeffe says in the clip.
“It was the Pakistan all-rounder — who was never short of female company it has to be said. I’m not saying they were groupies, but Imran Khan was attractive to women without question.”
At the time, Khan was staying at swish inner Sydney apartment complex The Connaught and would roar around the city in a bright red sports car provided by a sponsor.
According to O’Keeffe, Sydney University was defending just 180 on a flat deck and North Sydney was making easy work of the run chase as the lunch break was called.
While his University teammates were “nibbling nervously on some Sao’s”, Khan had other things on his mind.
“He was waltzing out of the carpark with the blonde into the red sports car and back to The Connaught,” O’Keeffe recalls.
“Now, A, you could lock in (they were heading back) for Tofu. B, to watch re-runs of Gunsmoke or, C, horizontal folk dancing — I’m not saying which one it was.
“All I’m saying after the forty minutes Sydney University strode out to try and defend their meagre total at 180 — only with 10 men.”
To make matters worse, their star bowler had failed to return from his lunchtime tryst and then-captain Mick O’Sullivan was furious.
“Twenty minutes after the break, Imran Khan with the blonde and the red sports car returned
and casually strolls onto the field at fine-leg,” O’Keeffe recalls.
Offering no explanation or apology for his absence, Khan “walked up to O’Sullivan and simply said ‘I will bowl now’.
“He bowled the most withering spell of reverse swing ever seen at Sydney University Oval”, propelling his team to victory.
In 1995, after a string of romances, Khan married 21-year-old London socialite Jemima Goldsmith, the daughter of British billionaire Sir James Goldsmith.
Jewish Goldsmith converted to Islam to marry Khan — who was twice her age — and the pair moved to Lahore to facilitate her husband’s dream of one day becoming prime minister of Pakistan.
Jemima hated the shallowness of her western life and longed for a more meaningful existence.
“I felt I’d met my soulmate,’’ she later said of Khan.
Taking a leaf out of her good friend Princess Diana’s book, Jemima threw herself into humanitarian work, focusing on the hundreds of thousands of Afghan refugees living in subhuman conditions in north Pakistan.
“I put my hand down to comfort a crying child sitting alone, whose legs have been horribly deformed by polio. Her clothes are still soaked from last night’s rain,’’ she wrote.
“I am filled with shame.’’
Her plea for donations touched thousands of hearts and, in just two weeks, she raised $120,000 to provide weatherproof tents for 1500 displaced families.
Jemima’s work would lead to inevitable comparisons to Diana, and the people’s princess would often visit the Khans in Pakistan.
Theirs was a fairytale union — at least to the outside world.
However, it wasn’t long before the pressures her husband’s political ambitions began to take their toll on Jemima, who was starting to pine for her former lifestyle, according to a 2001 article that appeared in Vanity Fair.
“Jemima waits endlessly at home for her elusive husband to return from his rounds of political meetings, hospital-related activities and, of course, the obligatory daily workout at his gym,’’ the article said.
“Much of the time Jemima doesn’t know where her husband is; when he doesn’t show up, she is often reduced to calling around to the gym or the hospital to try to locate him.
“Jemima doesn’t even have a washing machine to clean her children’s soiled clothes.’’
The pair split in 2004 but remained close and have continued to support each other over the years — even through Khan’s ill-fated second marriage, to BBC presenter Reham Khan, which ended in 2015.
After her ex-husband finally achieved his dream of attaining Pakistan’s highest office, Jemima
let the world know how proud she was of Khan in a remarkable tweet.
22 years later, after humiliations, hurdles and sacrifices, my sons’ father is Pakistan’s next PM. It’s an incredible lesson in tenacity, belief & refusal to accept defeat. The challenge now is to remember why he entered politics in the 1st place. Congratulations @ImranKhanPTI
— Jemima Goldsmith (@Jemima_Khan) July 26, 2018
“22 years later, after humiliations, hurdles and sacrifices, my sons’ father is Pakistan’s next PM,” she wrote.
“It’s an incredible lesson in tenacity, belief & refusal to accept defeat. The challenge now is to remember why he entered politics in the 1st place. Congratulations.”
Originally published as Imran Khan: From international playboy to prime minister of Pakistan
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