T20 World Cup 2022: Sri Lanka's Danushka Gunathilaka arrested by Sydney Police following rape charges

Sunday comes bearing bad news for the Sri Lankan cricket team after batting stalwart Danushka Gunathilaka was apprehended by the cops in the early hours from the team hotel in Sydney's central business district. The police arrested the cricketer after he was accused of sexually assaulting a 29-year-old woman earlier this week.

The Sri Lankan team, who lost their final Super 12 game against England on Saturday, left for the island, leaving Danushka Gunathilaka back. The 31-year-old was ruled out of Sri Lanka's T20 World Cup campaign in Australia following a hamstring injury during the Group stages of the competition.

"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)," a New South Wales police statement said.

Following his arrest, he was charged with four counts of forced sexual intercourse with the woman he apparently met on an online dating platform at the Sydney City Police Station. According to the report, the woman was assaulted at her home in Rose Bay earlier this week. The 31-year-old cricketer is due to appear in court later in the day after he was refused bail.

"He was taken to Sydney City Police Station and charged with four counts of sexual intercourse without consent. The Sri Lankan national was refused bail to appear at Parramatta Bail Court via AVL [audio visual links] today," the report added.

Since making his international debut in 2015, the Sri Lankan has featured in eight Tests, 47 ODIs, and 46 T20Is for the national team.