SYDNEY: In a recent development, Sri Lankan cricket international Danushka Gunathilaka has been acquitted of rape charges related to an encounter with a woman he met on a dating site during the South Asian team’s tour of Australia last November.
The verdict was delivered by Judge Sarah Huggett at Sydney’s Downing Centre District Court on Thursday, vindicating the 32-year-old player.
Judge Huggett emphasized the complainant’s intelligence and noted that while she did not deliberately provide false evidence about the use of a condom, her motivations appeared to cast the cricketer in an unfavourable light rather than present an accurate account of the events. Huggett stated, “I find that the evidence regarding the complaint far from supports the complainant. Rather it undermines the reliability of her evidence.”
The events in question unfolded as Gunathilaka and the woman met for drinks at a bar, followed by sharing a meal in downtown Sydney and taking a ferry to the woman’s residence in the city’s eastern suburbs. The woman accused Gunathilaka of acts of aggression and violence, leading to his arrest just hours before the Sri Lankan team was scheduled to return home on Nov. 6. Initially facing four charges, Gunathilaka pleaded not guilty to one count of sexual intercourse without consent.
Throughout the judge-alone trial, the defense challenged the credibility of the woman’s account, highlighting inconsistencies and shifts in her narrative over time. They argued that her portrayal of Gunathilaka as an aggressive individual was an edited version of events.
Gunathilaka, who had been on bail during the trial, faced restrictions that prevented him from participating in international cricket or returning to his hometown of Colombo in Sri Lanka. He travelled to Australia with Sri Lanka’s Twenty20 World Cup squad last year, playing in the team’s first game before being ruled out of the tournament due to a hamstring injury.
