Sri Lanka's Danushka Gunathilaka arrested for alleged rape, team departs without him

Sri Lanka cricketer Danushka Gunathilaka has been arrested in Sydney on charges of sexual assault. The cricketer was arrested from a hotel in Sydney, while the Sri Lankan team returned home as scheduled after being knocked out of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 on Saturday. The 31-year-old was taken to Sydney City police station in the wee hours of Sunday following an investigation into alleged sexual assault of a woman on November 2. 

Gunathilaka was ruled out of T20 World Cup 2022 with injury

Gunathilaka played against Namibia in the first round match of the ongoing T20 World Cup and was out for a duck. He was later ruled out of the tournament due to a hamstring injury even as the team qualified for the Super 12 stage. However, he continued to remain with the squad, despite being replaced by Ashen Bandara.

Sri Lanka team finished fourth in Group 1. It is pertinent to mention that Sri Lanka was knocked out of the tournament after losing to England on Sunday. 

Meanwhile, the New South Wales police, on its website, has also mentioned about the arrest of an unnamed Sri Lankan national.

"Sex Crimes Squad detectives have charged a Sri Lankan national following an investigation into the alleged sexual assault of a woman in Sydney's east last week," the report read. "The woman met with the man after communicating with him for a number of days via an online dating application; it's alleged he then sexually assaulted her on the evening of Wednesday 2 November 2022."

"As part of ongoing investigations, a crime scene examination was undertaken by specialist police at an address in Rose Bay yesterday. Following further inquiries, a 31-year-old man was arrested at a hotel on Sussex Street, Sydney, shortly before 1am today (Sunday 6 November 2022)," the report added. 

It is noteworthy that Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) is yet to issue a statement on the matter.