Danushka Gunathilaka's sexual assault case to be fast-tracked

Sri Lankan cricketer Danushka Gunathilaka, who was charged with for sexually assaulting a woman during the T20 World Cup 2022 in Australia, appeared in Sydney Downing Centre District Court on Monday, July 24 to apply for a judge-alone trial. The cricketer has pleaded not guilty to the offence which allegedly took place in the victim's home in November 2022. Judge Warwick Hunt granted his application for a judge-alone trial, which is estimated to take five days.

Gunathilaka’s lawyer Murugan Thangaraj SC also requested the court to fast-track the trial via another application so that his client could return to his home country as soon as possible, if found not guilty. He further stated that it was necessary to accelerate the proceedings so that Gunathilaka could resume his sporting career and provide financial support to his family.

“I’m persuaded the accused is under some psychological pressure that will continue to grow,” Judge Hunt was quoted as saying by news.com.au.

The court agreed that the cricketer has been diagnosed with severe clinical depression, which has been worsened by the ongoing legal proceedings and the media coverage of the case. Judge Hunt set the trial down to begin on September 18 after the crown prosecutor lent her full support to fastrack the proceedings.

Notably, Gunathilaka has been stranded in Australia since he was arrested over accusations of sexual assault last year and had to surrender his passport. According to police, the cricketer got a match with a woman on a dating app and the duo began chatting online before meeting for the first time on November 2.

The pair had drinks in the city before going back to the woman’s home in the eastern suburbs of Sydney around 11 pm. Gunathilaka allegedly ignored the woman’s request to “take it slow” and instead forced himself on the 29-year-old woman in her own home during which he choked her thrice.

The woman also told the police that she had agreed to sexual intercourse with the cricket star only if he wore a condom. The woman later found the condom on the floor beside the bed, as per the police. The court was told about the sexual assault charge related to “stealthing”, the non-consensual removal of protection during intercourse.