Sports
Danushka Gunathilaka has three sex assault charges withdrawn
Sri Lanka cricketer Danushka Gunathilaka has had three of four charges withdrawn relating to the alleged sexual assault of a woman in her home in Sydney’s eastern suburbs. The 32-year-old was arrested at his team’s hotel in Sydney’s CBD last year and charged with four counts of sexual intercourse without consent over the alleged incident on November 2.
Police say Gunathilaka, who attended Downing Centre Local Court on Thursday wearing a beige jumper and sunglasses, and the 29-year-old woman met through Tinder. Prosecutor Hugh Buddin, for the Director of Public Prosecutions, told the court one charge had been certified but the remaining three counts of sexual intercourse without consent had been withdrawn.
Magistrate Clare Farnan formally dismissed the counts.
“The complainant was in shock, she did not feel safe saying anything to the accused out of fear of retribution.”
The three withdrawn charges related to allegations Gunathilaka had digitally penetrated the woman’s vagina and put his penis in her mouth.
The remaining charge, according to the police statement of alleged facts, is that Gunathilaka engaged in “forceful” sexual intercourse, during which he allegedly “put one hand around her neck for 20 to 30 seconds and choked her”.
“The complainant was too afraid to do anything,” the police facts claim, alleging he had choked her twice more.
Gunathilaka allegedly restricted the woman’s breathing for six seconds, before she “tried to remove the accused’s hand by grabbing his wrist, but the accused squeezed tighter around her neck for a further 10 seconds”.
“The complainant was fearing for her life and could not get away from the accused,” police allege.
During the alleged choking, the police facts claim Gunathilaka continued to have sexual intercourse for 10 to 15 minutes before sitting on the edge of the bed. At this point, the complainant allegedly noticed “the condom was on the floor”.
“The complainant was in shock, she did not feel safe saying anything to the accused out of fear of retribution,” the police facts claim.
“The complainant was clear that she did not consent to engaging in sexual intercourse without a condom. Further, the complainant did not consent to sexual intercourse that involved choking.”
Gunathilaka’s solicitor Alen Sahinovic said the parties were yet to have a case conference and asked for the matter to return to court on July 13. He said he expects it to proceed to committal on that date.
Gunathilaka travelled to Australia with Sri Lanka’s T20 World Cup team but only played in their first game before being ruled out of the competition with a hamstring tear.
He was arrested on November 6 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel on Sussex Street before the team’s departure, and participated in a recorded police interview, assisted by an interpreter. Gunathilaka remains on bail on conditions including daily reporting to police and the surrender of his passport.
He is allowed a mobile phone but must not use any dating applications, including Tinder. His conditions specify that he is allowed to use Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp but the latter application “is not to be used for the purposes of facilitating or arranging dating”.
Gunathilaka has been in custody since his arrest on November 6. Securities totalling $200,000 are attached to his bail and would be forfeited for any failure to comply. Sri Lanka Cricket has suspended him from all forms of the game.
Shammi Silva has once again taken guard at the top of Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), securing a fourth consecutive term as President at the Annual General Meeting, held amidst much fanfare at Colombo’s Cinnamon Grand Hotel yesterday.
Already calling the shots as President of the Asian Cricket Council, Silva’s crowning achievement in recent years has been bringing the 2026 ICC T20 World Cup to Sri Lankan shores. The marquee tournament will be co-hosted by Sri Lanka and India next year, a feather in the cap for the country’s cricket administrators.
Silva’s administration has made a concerted effort to bridge the yawning gap between domestic and international cricket. One of the bold strokes in this innings has been trimming the number of First-Class teams – a move aimed at upping the quality and sharpening the edge of domestic cricket.
SLC Ex-Co also played a straight bat when it comes to developing cricket beyond Colombo’s city limits. High Performance Centres have sprung up across the outstations, rolling out the red carpet for raw talent from the hinterlands, who had previously been left in the pavilion.
The school cricket circuit too has been given a shot in the arm, with infrastructure development and skill enhancement taking centre stage. By strengthening the grassroots, the current administration hopes to widen the talent pool and unearth future stars of the game.
SLC’s balance sheet tells its own story – healthy and in the black. Over the past five years, the board’s financial stability has not only benefited cricket, but has also allowed it to lend a helping hand to other sports disciplines, at the request of the Ministry of Sports.
With over three decades of experience under his belt as a sports administrator, Shammi Silva is the long-serving President of the Colombo Cricket Club (CCC), one of the game’s oldest institutions in the country.
The 64th AGM was largely a case of “same XI, new season,” with only one notable change to the playing field – Secretary Mohan de Silva making way for seasoned campaigner Bandula Dissanayake. No stranger to the inner workings of SLC, Dissanayake has previously chaired the Tournament and Umpires Committees, and brings a wealth of experience to the table.
Dr. Jayantha Dharmadasa and former First-Class player Ravin Wickramaratne retained their Vice-President slots, while Sujeewa Godaliyadda continues to hold the Treasurer’s post. Chryshantha Kapuwatta and Lasantha Wickremasinghe will once again don the hats of Assistant Secretary and Assistant Treasurer, respectively.
The election, part of SLC’s biannual cycle, was overseen and greenlit by the Election Committee chaired by retired Court of Appeal Justice Malani Gunaratne.
Vidyaloka College fought back on the back of a valuable century by Nimesh Aavinda to pull off two wickets victory over Kingswood in the Under 19 Division II Tier ‘B’ cricket tournament final played at Saliyapura, Anuradhapura on Monday.
Vidyaloka had a deficit of 36 runs in the first innings but a combined effort helped them restrict Kingswood to 161 runs in the second essay. They were left with a target of 198 runs to chase. And they achieved it with Nimesh Aavinda top scoring with 115 runs.
Scores
Kingswood
227 all out in 83.3 overs (Chanul Kodituwakku 33, Aadil Sheriff 69, Kavija Gamage 25, Nikeshala Nanayakkara 56; Seniru Ninduwara 4/74, Lidula Nuwanga 2/58, Nimesh Aavinda 2/48, Pulindu Chamuditha 2/19) and 161 all out in 65.3 overs (Kavija Gamage 57, Nikeshala Nanayakkara 45; Seniru Ninduwara 2/45, Pulindu Chamuditha 2/07)
Vidyaloka
191 all out in 79.3 overs (Lidula Nuwanga 81, Seniru Ninduwara 34, Tharusha Jayamith 23; Kavija Gamage 4/63, Upadi Jayawardane 2/41) and 200 for 8 in 48.3 overs( Nimesh Aavinda 114, Lidula Nuwanga 34, Seniru Ninduwara 28; Kavija Gamage 3/80, Dominsara Peiris 2/51)
by Reemus Fernando
There was a growing sense of uncertainty surrounding the hosting of the 120th edition of the Lovers’ Quarrel Big Match after Richmond College raised concerns over an attempt by Mahinda College to field a newly recruited player in the team at the historic match which was scheduled to commence on Thursday.
Richmond College authorities have informed Mahinda that they would pullout from the match if the newly recruited player who played for St. Aloysius’ in the just concluded Under 19 cricket tournament is included in the Big Match team.
According to sources Mahinda College have recruited St. Aloysius’ skipper Charya Paranavithana at the end of the Under 19 cricket tournament and are yet to register him under their name with Sri Lanka Schools Cricket Association. They have included the player in the Big Match squad.
A source close to Mahinda said that though the player is included in the squad he was not certain to be in the playing XI.
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