Sandeep Lamichhane suspended by Cricket Association of Nepal after being convicted in rape case

Nepal leg-spinner Sandeep Lamichhane has been suspended by the Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) after he was sentenced to eight years in prison for raping an 18-year-old woman.

The verdict on Lamichhane’s rape case was announced by the Kathmandu District Court on Wednesday, January 10. The following day, CAN issued an official statement about the development.

“We inform you that Sandeep Lamichhane has been suspended from any kind of domestic and international cricket activities as he has been convicted and sentenced,” the CAN statement read.

As per a report in the news agency PTI, a single-judge bench imposed a Rs 3,00,000 fine on the cricketer and also ordered him to pay Rs 2,00,000 compensation to the victim.

Last year, after an arrest warrant was issued by the Kathmandu police against Lamichhane, the bowler was suspended as Nepal captain by CAN.

PTI further quoted the 23-year-old’s lawyer, Saroj Ghimire, as telling The Kathmandu Post that the player “will appeal the decision in a higher court.”

When the rape complaint was lodged against Lamichhane last year, he was playing in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) for Jamaica Tallawahs. The franchise, however, released him with immediate effect.

Upon his return to Kathmandu, he was arrested. Lamichhane, however, claimed innocence and alleged that there was a conspiracy behind the case.

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Sandeep Lamichhane was considered a highly promising leg-spinner

Before being convicted in the rape case, Lamichhane was considered among the brightest cricketing talents from Nepal. The 23-year-old has featured in 51 ODIs and 52 T20Is, claiming 112 and 98 wickets at an average of 18.06 and 12.58, respectively.

In List A cricket, he has 158 scalps in 75 matches at an average of 18.28 and an impressive economy rate of 4.29. In his overall T20 career, he has picked up 206 wickets in 144 matches at an average of under 18.

Lamichhane has also featured in the Indian Premier League (IPL). He was part of Delhi Capitals from 2018-20, claiming 13 wickets in nine matches at an average of 22.46.