India-origin player set to return to Hobart Hurricanes after rape allegation exoneration

All-rounder Nikhil Chaudhary is all set to return and play for Hobart Hurricanes in the upcoming season of the Big Bash League (BBL) after being found not guilty of a rape allegation despite not informing the franchise about the court trial. Nikhil Chaudhary was alleged of raping a 20-year-old woman in a car in Townsville in 2021 but the jury found him not guilty, in March this year. However, Cricket Tasmania has said that they were not informed of the charge or court hearing by the cricketer.

Chaudhary joined the Hurricanes in 2023 and got a deal extension up to 2027 in February, a month before his court trial. Cricket Tasmania's general manager Salliann Beams informed reporters that the organisation was still going through internal processes about Chaudhary but he would most likely play in the upcoming season.

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Salliann Beams on Nikhil Chaudhary

Salliann Beams said that the franchise was disappointed with Chaudhary not informing Cricket Tasmania about the charges or trial.

"[There are] some legalities through that process. It's not so much the incident because we know that nothing happened ... legally not guilty and everything. It's just the disclosure of information. We want to know where we sit on that because we were completely in the dark."

"You have to deal with the organisation's point of view and the impact that it could potentially have on that because you don't really want to associate yourself with ... that type of investigation. But at the same time, you can understand from the players' point of view is that, you know, they've done nothing wrong and it's a scary place. [You're] legally advised not to say anything, so you're always balancing different sides of the story."

Nikhil Chaudhary in BBL

Nikhil Chaudhary is the second-only Indian-origin player to play in the renowned Big Bash League after Umukt Chand. He has played 9 matches for Hobart Hurricanes and has scored 154 runs with a strike rate of 142.59. He also has a half-century in front of his name. The all-rounder has also picked up 5 wickets.

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