End of an era as Shyam Sundar Mitra passes away

KOLKATA: Shyam Sundar Mitra, one of Bengal's most accomplished batsmen, passed away at a Salt Lake nursing home on Thursday morning. He was 82 and is survived by wife, son and daughter.
Mitra had been unwell since February, informed daughter Sumitra. Two days ago, he was admitted to a private nursing home where he was being treated for a lung infection.
A rock-solid top-order batsman with an impeccable technique and impregnable defence, Mitra - popularly known as 'SS' - led Bengal in the mid and late Sixties.
Those who saw him play had no doubt in their minds that Mitra should have donned the India flannels.
"He was a very good cricketer and fit to play for India… very unfortunate to have missed out," was how Chuni Goswami remembered his former teammate.
"He had a very tight defence, played spin and pace equally well. He was especially strong on the leg side, between mid-on and square leg," reminisced Goswami.
"We were very close as we played together from a young age… from college to state level," added the 81-year Goswami, who represented Bengal in both cricket and football, and took over the Bengal captaincy in Ranji Trophy after Mitra retired.
Mitra played 59 matches in his first-class career, scoring 3058 runs at an impressive average of 50.13. He scored seven centuries and 17 fifties, his best being a knock of 155. He was a useful part-time bowler as well, taking 15 wickets.
Some of his knocks are part of Bengal cricketing folklore. One of them helped Bengal avoid outright defeat against Bombay (as Mumbai was called then) in the Ranji Trophy semifinal at Eden Gardens. Among those who watched that century was a young Sunil Gavaskar, who years later mentioned that innings in an article he wrote in 1982.
"The poise and the calm with which he ticked off those runs was a lesson for a youngster like me, who was coming up at that stage... What was most impressive was the unhurried way he seemed to play, the unhurried way he seemed to move between the wickets and yet when he looked at the scoreboard, it was always impressive," Gavaskar wrote.
Mitra was conferred with the Lifetime Achievement award by the Cricket Association of Bengal in 2009. Mohun Bagan, for whom he played most of his club cricket, also honoured him with the Lifetime achievement honour, in 2017.
"It's a great loss for Bengal cricket. He was a leader on and off the field and a perfect gentleman. My heartfelt condolences to the bereaved. May his soul rest in peace," said CAB joint secretary Avishek Dalmiya.