Chetan Chauhan, former cricketer and UP cabinet minister, passes away at 73

Former Indian cricketer and politician Chetan Chauhan, who had tested positive for coronavirus disease (COVID-19) earlier, passed away today (i.e. August 16, Sunday) at the age of 73. He died due to COVID-19 related complications after being put on life support for nearly 36 hours, his brother Pushpendra Chauhan said.

Chauhan, who was also a cabinet minister in the Yogi Adityanath-led Uttar Pradesh state government, had been admitted to the Sanjay Gandhi PGI Hospital in Lucknow after he tested positive for COVID-19 on July 12. He was put on ventilator support after suffering a multi-organ failure on Friday night.

"My elder brother Shri Chetan Chauhan has left us today after fighting a good battle. I sincerely thank everyone who had prayed for his recovery. His son Vinayak will be reaching anytime and we will then perform last rites," news agency PTI quoted Pushpendra.

Chauhan had represented India in 40 Tests and was also the longest-serving opening partner to Sunil Gavaskar. He later went on to serve the Delhi & Districts Cricket Association (DDCA) in various capacities. 

From the president, vice-president, secretary to even chief selector, he was even the manager of the Indian team during their tour of Australia. 

As for his debut, Chauhan was 22-year-old when he faced Mumbai. He represented Delhi and Maharashtra in the Ranji Trophy competition.

One of the most memorable moments was the 213-run stand he put with Gavaskar at The Oval in 1979. He contributed 80 runs to that partnership. 

The duo also broke the then-record for the opening wicket – which was held by Vijay Merchant and Mushtaq Ali - who put on 203 runs at Old Trafford in 1936.

Chauhan had also represented India in seven ODIs. He scored 2084 in Tests and 153 runs in ODIs. During his playing days, he was also the first batsman to complete 2000 runs in Tests without scoring a century. He also had two Test wickets to his name.