Sandeep Lamichhane acquitted, likely to play T20 World Cup

Former captain of Nepal cricket team Sandeep Lamichhane is likely to play in the upcoming T20 World Cup after he was acquitted by a court in a rape case.

“The high court has overturned the district court’s decision. Sandeep Lamichhane has been acquitted,” a spokesman for the Patan High Court of Nepal said on Wednesday.

The star leg-spinner was accused of raping a young woman in a Kathmandu hotel in 2022 and was detained following an arrest warrant.

The leg-spinner was later released on bail, however, the Nepal cricket board suspended him as the captain of the team.

He was allowed to play for the national team after which he played in the World Cup qualifiers and the 2023 Asia Cup.

Read more: Nepal’s Sandeep Lamichhane gets eight years imprisonment for rape

Lamichhane was found guilty of the rape charge in December 2023 by a court which sentenced him to eight-year in jail in January this year.

Following his acquittal, local media outlets began reporting that Sandeep Lamichhane is likely to join Nepal’s squad for the T20 World Cup.

It is pertinent to mention that teams are allowed to make changes to their provisional squads till May 25 which opened a door for Nepal to include the 23-year-old in the squad.

Lamichhane has been the face of cricket in Nepal and the only player from the Himalayan country to take part in prominent Twenty20 leagues in India, Australia, Pakistan and West Indies.