Pananmal Hotchand Punjabi was an Indian cricketer of transition period of British Colonial Empire and the Indian Independence. He was born on 20th September 1921. He played with the major domestic teams of Indian cricket like Gujarat Cricket team and Sind Cricket Team (which is now in Pakistan). He was the right handed batman.
Pananmal Hotchand Punjabi was an Indian cricketer who played consistently in five test matches in 1955. Pananmal Hotchand Punjabi came from Karachi which is now in Pakistan. He spoke mainly Sindhi language. He represented Gujarat Cricket Team in the domestic cricket tournaments like Ranji Trophy. He also played for Gujarat Cricket Team in his first class career. After retirement from Indian cricket scenario, Pananmal Hotchand Punjabi was employed as a supervisor in Burmah Shell.
Pananmal Hotchand Punjabi was a right-handed opening batsman. Pananmal Hotchand Punjabi had a long but somewhat intermittent first-class cricket career, starting with two matches for Sind before partition and resuming more regularly from 1951 for Gujarat Cricket team.
Batting Averages
| Mat | Inns | NO | Runs | HS | Ave | 100 | 50 | 6s | Ct | St | |
| Tests | 5 | 10 | 0 | 164 | 33 | 16.4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| First-class | 32 | 53 | 2 | 1953 | 224* | 38.29 | 6 | 5 | 16 | 0 |
Bowling Averages
| Mat | Inns | Balls | Runs | Wkts | BBI | BBM | Ave | Econ | SR | 4w | 5w | 10 | |
| Tests | 5 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| First-class | 32 | 132 | 100 | 2 | 1/10 | - | 50 | 5 | 66 | 0 | 0 |
In the 1953-1954 season, Pananmal Hotchand Punjabi scored three centuries in three matches. After that, he was picked for the tour to Pakistan in the following season, 1954-55. Pananmal Hotchand Punjabi opened the batting in all five Tests with Pankaj Roy, and scored 164 runs, the fourth highest aggregate for the team. But his highest was only 33 and the series consisted largely of defensive cricket with all Tests drawn, the first time this had happened in a five-match series.
Pananmal Hotchand Punjabi played on in Indian domestic cricket until 1959 to 1960. There he did his scoring, which is his highest score, an undefeated 224, in his penultimate game. But Pananmal Hotchand Punjabi was never selected again for International Test cricket.
He died on 4th October 2011 in Mumbai (Maharashtra) at the age of 90.
