ZCZC
BSP-14
SRI-RSA-CRICKET-GUNATHILAKA-CRIME
Six-match ban for Sri Lanka opener Gunathilaka
COLOMBO, July 27, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – Sri Lanka’s cricket board Friday
slapped a six-match ban on batsman Danushka Gunathilaka for breaching player
rules as police investigated the alleged rape of a Norwegian woman in his
hotel room.
Gunathilaka, 27, was questioned by police on Tuesday after his associate
Sandeep Jude Selliah, 26, was accused of raping one of two Norwegian women
with them in a room at the team hotel.
Police said Gunathilaka was not an accused, but a cricket board hearing
found him guilty of breaching team discipline and violating his contract.
The incident is said to have happened in the early hours of Sunday just
before Sri Lanka completed a Test win over South Africa.
SLC rules stipulate that during matches players must be in their hotel
rooms by midnight and cannot have guests.
“Sri Lanka Cricket decided to suspend Danushka Gunathilaka from six
international cricket matches for breaching the ‘Player Code of Conduct and
Contractual Obligation’,” said a board statement.
Gunathilaka will now miss five one-day internationals starting Sunday
against South Africa and a one-off T20 match.
He had already been excluded from Sri Lanka’s ODI squad pending the
disciplinary hearing. Gunathilaka was already on probation for another
transgression when the new charges were slapped over his conduct at the
weekend.
The six-match ban takes into consideration a misconduct offence in October
last year. Local media said that punishment came after he missed a training
session following late-night partying.
Sri Lanka Cricket said he will forfeit his match fee for the second Test
against South Africa and any other bonus payments for winning the two match
series.
Gunathilaka and Selliah were with two Norwegian women at the team hotel in
Colombo during the 2nd Test. One woman later accused the Selliah, a British
passport-holder of Sri Lankan origin, of raping her. He was later arrested by
police.
BSS/AFP/BZC/2000HRS