Chuni Goswami
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 27 May 2008
Subimal "Chuni" Goswami (15 January 1938:– 30 April 2020) was an Indian professional footballer and first-cl* cricketer. As footballer, he played as a striker or winger, captained both the Mohun Bagan club and the Indian national team. He is a former Sheriff of Kolkata. Goswami scored nine goals in 30 international appearances. He was an Olympian, represented India national team at the 1960 Summer Olympics. He also led the team to achieve the gold medal at the 1962 Asian Games and earn the runners-up position at the 1964 AFC Asian Cup.
He was also a first cl* cricketer, playing Ranji Trophy for Bengal. He captained his team to the final of the tournament in 1971–72.
Contents
- 1 Football career
- 1.1 Club career
- 1.2 International career
- 1.3 International statistics
- 1.4 International goals
- 2 Honours
- 2.1 International
- 3 Cricket career
- 4 Death
- 5 Awards
- 6 See also
- 7 References
- 8 External links
Football career
Goswami in October 2020Chuni Goswami holds the distinction of playing for a single club, Mohun Bagan, throughout his club career despite numerous offers from other clubs including one reported offer from Tottenham Hotspur.
Club career
Goswami joined the Mohun Bagan Junior Team in 1946 at the age of 8 years. He was a part of the Junior squad up to 1954 and then graduated to the Mohun Bagan senior team. He continued playing for Mohun Bagan till his retirement in 1968. During his stay with the club, he captained the club in 5 seasons from 1960 to 1964.
International career
Chuni Goswami made his international debut for India in 1956 during the team's 1–0 victory over the Chinese Olympic team. He went on to play for India in 50 international matches including in Olympics, Asian Games, Asia Cup and Merdeka Cup. He captained India to the Asian Games Gold Medal in 1962 and a Silver in the 1964 Asia Cup in Tel Aviv and in the Merdeka Cup.
International statistics
Further information: India national football team resultsChuni Goswami played in 30 FIFA "A" international matches having scored 9 times for the National team.
International goals
Honours
International
India
- Asian Games
- AFC Asian Cup
Cricket career
Source: Cricinfo, 7 March 2014Chuni Goswami made his first cl* debut for Bengal in the Ranji Trophy during the 1962–63 season. He was a Right Handed Batsman and a Right Arm Medium Pacer. After retiring from football, Goswami fully focussed on playing cricket for West Bengal. He appeared in two Ranji Trophy finals, losing to Mumbai each time. In the 1968–69 final, he scored 96 and 84; but Ajit Wadekar's century helped Mumbai win on first innings lead. Later, he led the Bengal cricket team to a 1972 Ranji Trophy final which they lost to Mumbai for whom Gavaskar and Shivalkar starred. Playing for Combined East and Central Zone team against the touring West Indies side in December 1966, Chuni Goswami took 8 wickets in the match as his team surprisingly beat the tourists by an innings. In his cricket career, which spanned up to the 1972–73 season, he played 46 first cl* matches, scoring 1,592 runs with one century and seven fifties, and took 47 wickets.
Death
Goswami died on 30 April 2020 at the age of 82 in Kolkata after a prolonged illness. For the last few months, Goswami was suffering from underlying ailments with diabetes, prostate infection and neurological problems. His family confirmed that Goswami was admitted to a city hospital earlier in the day and died at 5 pm after a cardiac arrest.
Awards
Goswami won numerous awards during his playing career as well as after retirement for his contribution towards Indian football. The major awards won by him are:
- 1962 Best Striker of Asia Award
- 1963 Arjuna award
- 1983 Padma Shri award
- 2005 Mohan Bagan Ratna
See also
- Football at the Asian Games
- India national football team at the Olympics
References
External links
- Chuni Goswami at FIFA (archived)
- Chuni Goswami at Olympedia
- Details at RSSSF