Kolkata, India, April 30, 2020: Former India football captain Chuni Goswami, 82, passed away in Kolkata on Thursday after a prolonged illness, reports The Hindu Sportstar.
The captain of the 1962 Asian Games gold-medal winning team, Goswami had also represented Bengal in first-class cricket tournaments.
Under his captaincy, the Indian football team won gold at the 1962 Asian Games in Jakarta and finished runner-up at the Asian Cup in 1964.
In club football, Goswami always played for Mohun Bagan. In his college days, he captained Calcutta University in both football and cricket in the same year.
Starting his international career in 1957, Goswami was one of the biggest stars of the national team. However, he retired from international football in 1964 at the age of 27.
Not just football, Goswami was successful in cricket as well. In 1966, he and Subroto Guha plotted the historic innings defeat of Gary Sobers’ West Indies by the combined Central and East Zone team under Hanumant Singh in Indore. Goswami took eight wickets in the match.
He was appointed the Bengal Ranji Trophy captain in 1971-72 season and, under his captaincy, the team reached the final before losing against Bombay at the Brabourne Stadium.
The Asian Football Confederation commented: “The 1962 Asian Games gold medalist and captain of the Indian football team, Chuni Goswami, passed away after a prolonged illness at the age of 82 today in Kolkata. We extend our condolences to his family and fans.”
