{{Short description|Indian cricketer}} {{Use dmy dates|date=October 2023}}{{Use Indian English|date=July 2013}} {{Infobox cricketer | name = Naoomal Jeoomal | image = 1932 Indian Test Cricket team.jpg | caption = 1932 Indian Test Cricket team | fullname = Naoomal Jeoomal Makhija | birth_date = {{birth date|1904|04|17|df=y}} | birth_place = Karachi, Bombay Presidency, British India | death_date = {{Death date and age|1980|07|28|1904|04|17|df=yes}} | death_place = Bombay, Maharashtra, India | family = Hari Naoomal (son) | heightft = 5 | heightinch = 9 | batting = Right-handed | bowling = Leg-break | columns = 2 | column1 = Test | matches1 = 3 | runs1 = 108 | bat avg1 = 27.00 | 100s/50s1 = 0/0 | top score1 = 43 | deliveries1 = 108 | wickets1 = 2 | bowl avg1 = 34.00 | fivefor1 = 0 | tenfor1 = 0 | best bowling1 = 1/4 | catches/stumpings1= 0/– | column2 = First-class | matches2 = 84 | runs2 = 4,140 | bat avg2 = 32.59 | 100s/50s2 = 7/16 | top score2 = 203* | deliveries2 = 5,102 | wickets2 = 108 | bowl avg2 = 27.54 | fivefor2 = 6 | tenfor2 = 0 | best bowling2 = 5/18 | catches/stumpings2= 43/– | country = India | international = true | internationalspan = 1932–1934 | testcap = 5 | testdebutagainst = England | testdebutdate = 25 June | testdebutyear = 1932 | lasttestdate = 10 February | lasttestagainst = England | lasttestyear = 1934 | source = http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/content/player/31939.html ESPNcricinfo | date = 9 May | year = 2020 }} '''Naoomal Jeoomal Makhija''' {{Audio|Naoomal Jeoomal.ogg|pronunciation}} (17 April 1904 – 28 July 1980) was an Indian cricketer, who was India's first opening batsman in Test cricket.<ref name="Bio">{{Cite web|url=http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/content/player/31939.html |title=Naoomal Jeoomal|access-date=9 May 2020 |publisher=ESPNcricinfo}}</ref>
==Early life== He was born on 17 April 1904, in Karachi, Sindh.<ref>{{cite web|title=Naoomal Jeoomal PLAYER BIONEW|url=https://sports.ndtv.com/cricket/players/41326-makhija-naoomal-jeoomal-playerprofile|website=sports.ndtv.com|publisher=NDTV Convergence Limited|access-date=7 December 2016}}</ref> He was the son of head clerk of a private company. He was a matriculation. He made his First-Class debut against Arthur Gilligan's MCC in 1926-27 for Hindus and The Rest at Karachi, scoring 16.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Mukherjee|first1=Abhishek|title=Naoomal Jaoomal: The man who opened batting in India's first ever Test|url=http://www.cricketcountry.com/articles/naoomal-jaoomal-the-man-who-opened-batting-in-indias-first-ever-test-126656|website=cricketcountry.com|date=17 April 2014 |publisher=India.com|access-date=7 December 2016}}</ref>
==Career== Naoomal Jeoomal scored 33 and 25 opening India's innings in their first ever Test at Lord's in 1932. He also shared stands of 39 and 41 with his opening partner Janardan Navle in the two innings. Naoomal was a diminutive, defensive batsman whose strong point was the cut. He made 1,297 runs in the tour, playing in all the 26 first class matches, a decent performance{{Citation needed|date=March 2012}} considering that he had played only on matting wickets till then. Wisden even commented on Jeoomal's fielding abilities.
When England returned the visit in 1933–34, Jeoomal missed the first Test. He scored 2 and 43 at Calcutta, but in Madras, he was hit on the face by Nobby Clark. The ball left a half-inch cut across the left eye. The injury ended his innings and he did not play another Test. In his first match in the Ranji Trophy, for Sind against Western India in 1934–35, he scored 63 and 53, despite being hit by Amar Singh and Ladha Ramji, and took 5/78 and 3/52 in bowling. He played in the Sind Pentangular matches from 1922 till 1946, scoring 1,993 runs (average 47) with six hundreds.{{Citation needed|date=May 2020}}
His highest score in first-class cricket was a 203* scored in four and a half hours for Sind against Nawanagar in 1938–39.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/16/16861.html |title=Match Scorecard|access-date=9 May 2020 |work=CricketArchive}}</ref> The Sind total of 326 was at the time the second lowest completed first class innings to include a double hundred.
==Retirement and coaching== He coached Pakistan in the late 1950s and became national selector from 1957. He also served as an umpire in first-class matches, mostly in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Naoomal Jaoomal: The man who opened batting in India's first ever Test |url=https://www.cricketcountry.com/articles/naoomal-jaoomal-the-man-who-opened-batting-in-indias-first-ever-test-126656 |date=13 May 2016 |website=Cricket Country |author=Abhishek Mukherjee }}</ref> He moved to India in 1971.
His son, Hari Naoomal also played first class cricket for Karachi University and Karachi Greens from 1961 till 1970 season.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Hari Naoomal |url=https://www.espncricinfo.com/cricketers/hari-naoomal-40489/matches |access-date=26 February 2024 |website=ESPNCricinfo }}</ref>
Jeoomal was the oldest Indian Test cricketer to attend the Golden Jubilee Test in 1980, which marked the fiftieth year of the founding of BCCI. The oldest living cricketer Cota Ramaswami was absent.
'''Note''' : Jeoomal's obituaries in Wisden Almanack and Wisden Cricket Monthly both give his date of death as 18 July.
==References== {{Reflist}} * Indian Cricket 1980 obituary * Christopher Martin-Jenkins, ''The Complete Who's Who of Test Cricketers''
==External links== *{{cricinfo|id=31939}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jeoomal, Naoomal}} Category:1904 births Category:1980 deaths Category:India Test cricketers Category:Indian cricketers Category:Cricketers from Karachi Category:Northern India cricketers Category:Hindus cricketers Category:Sindh cricketers Category:Maharashtra cricketers Category:Karachi cricketers Category:Indian Sindhi people Category:Pakistani Hindus Category:Pakistani cricket coaches Category:Pakistani cricket umpires Category:Pakistani emigrants to India Category:Naturalised citizens of India Category:Cricketers from Mumbai Category:Sindhi sportspeople